Mortgage sales soared by more than a quarter during May, with all regions of the UK witnessing solid growth.
Total sales hit a monthly high for 2017 of £17bn – up by 25.4 per cent on the previous month’s figure, according to the latest data from intermediary database Equifax Touchstone.
Buy-to-let jumped 26.1 per cent to £2.7bn, while residential grew by 25.2 per cent to £14.3bn.
The strongest growth – 36.3 per cent - was witnessed in Northern Ireland, followed by the north east (30.1 per cent) and London (28.7 per cent).
It marks a sharp rebound from the 16 per cent drop in sales that took place during the previous month.
Equifax Touchstone director John Driscoll said: “Following weak figures last month, prompted by government intervention to cool buy-to-let property sales and election uncertainty, mortgage sales have rebounded in quite spectacular fashion, hitting a monthly high for 2017 of £17bn, with every single region experiencing notable growth.
“The outlook for the market however remains murky as issues such as political uncertainty linger; but we could see this sales boost continue into the summer months.”
Darren Meade, head of mortgages at London-based deVere, said he thought the rebound was mainly due to seasonal factors.
“Easter came much later this year, and the school holidays in April caused a real slowdown,” he explained. “We had a strong-ish May and a stronger June, and we are now getting back to quarter one levels.
“We are seeing more enquiries, and it is a mix of residential and buy-to-let.”
simon.allin@ft.com
