Despite the Chancellor’s best efforts, buy-to-let lending continues to rise, according to the Bank of England and FCA latest Mortgage Lenders and Administrators Statistics.
Data from the report shows that gross advances totalled £62.1bn in Q3-up by 11.1% than at the same period in 2014.
Rises
The proportion of fixed interest rates rose from 78.9% in Q2 to 80.7% in Q3, with worries about an imminent Bank Rate rise subsiding.
Average interest rates decreased by 7 basis points during the third quarter of 2015 to 2.76%. This was the lowest rate since the series began in 2007.
Residential loan amounts outstanding in Q3 of 2015 totalled £1,281.9bn, an increase of 0.8% in comparison to Q2 2015 and 2.1% over the last year. New commitments rose from £59.3bn in Q2 2015 to £64.2bn in Q3 2015, representing an increase of 19.8% compared to Q3 2014.
First-time buyers
The total value of residential loans advanced to first-time buyers also went up over the quarter to £12.7bn from £10.9bn. This said, the proportion of lending in excess of 90% LTV decreased by 0.7% percentage points over the period.
There was however an increase in value terms in buy-to-let lending during the past twelve months-from £8.0bn advanced in Q3 2014 to £9.7bn in Q3 2015. The number of new arrears cases in the quarter was 20,335-2.2% lower than in Q2 of 2015 and the lowest since 2007.
However, new cases taken into possession totalled 2,881 in Q3 2015, a rise of 7.7% from the second period of this year. In addition, this was the first increase reported since Q1 of 2014.