house purchase lending up 8% yr on yr in May

July 13, 2016

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) in a press release published  today on their website states ‘May house purchase lending 8% up on a year ago’.

In May (In Brief) according to CML, Home-owners borrowed £9.4bn for house purchase, First-time buyers borrowed £4.3bn, Home movers borrowed £5.1bn, Remortgage activity totalled £5.2bn and Landlords borrowed £2.6bn.

Paul Smee, director general of the CML, commented: “There was a sense of the market regaining some equilibrium in May, following the stamp duty driven spike in March and the subsequent dip in April. For the second month running, first-time buyers borrowed more than home movers, the first time in 20 years that this has been the case. Buy-to-let continues at lower levels as expected, after the change to stamp duty.

“Brexit, and its likely effect on the market, is a question to which the answer will not immediately be forthcoming. Lenders will continue to be open for business as usual, but lending volumes may be affected by uncertain consumer sentiment”.

To read the CML report in full click here

Allen Walkey

Highly experienced businessman with a successful career in property sales and investment both in the UK and abroad. Now a freelance writer and blogger for the property and Investment Industry, keeping readers up-to-date with changes and events in a rapidly changing world.

You May Also Enjoy

Estate Agent Talk

The ‘Rentvesting’ Strategy: Owning a Home Where You Can’t Afford to Live

Oh, the ever-evolving property market. Keeps us wondering: how will I keep my head above water? And this is how a war-like property strategist is born. One of these savvy strategies is called: rentvesting. This is the art of renting where you want to live and buying where it fits your wallet.  Getting your foot…
Read More →
Rightmove logo
Breaking News

Momentum gathers for retail investment as Bank Rate cut again

Demand to invest in retail property was up by 30% in Q3 2025 compared to the same period in 2024 The office market is also continuing to recover, with investment demand up by 31% over the same period, and leasing demand up by 7% Overall demand to invest in commercial property was up by 11%…
Read More →
Breaking News

Surge in first-time buyers’ preference for cheaper homes subsides as market adjusts to April’s stamp duty changes

Proportion of first-time buyers purchasing properties under £300k decreased to 64.3 per cent in September, following a peak of 72.0 per cent in May after changes to stamp duty thresholds Detached and semi-detached homes now make up nearly two-thirds of non-first-time buyer purchases, as ‘second-steppers’ look for long-term security Spending on mortgage and rental payments…
Read More →
Breaking News

UK House Price Index summary: August 2025

The average price of a property in the UK was £273,000 The annual price change for a property in the UK was 3.0% The monthly price change for a property in the UK was 0.8% The monthly index figure (January 2023 = 100) for the UK was 104.6   Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert, says:…
Read More →
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 22/10/25

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   Why software audits matter for Proptechs In today’s hyper-competitive real estate technology landscape, scaling too quickly, or operating with outdated or inefficient systems can expose firms to risks far beyond lost opportunities. That’s why an increasing number of organisations are turning to a specialised…
Read More →
Estate Agent Talk

Demand for project properties soars versus general market

New research from The Property DriveBuy reveals that demand for fixer-upper properties is easily eclipsing overall market demand as homebuyers demonstrate a strong appetite for renovation projects amidst ongoing affordability restrictions due to stubbornly higher mortgage rates and slow but steady house price growth. Across England, there are currently an estimated 601,525 homes listed for…
Read More →