Home buyers in Scotland borrowed less towards the end of last year, latest figures show

Home buyers in Scotland borrowed £2.2 billion in the final quarter of 2016, down 0.5% quarter on quarter and 3% year on year, the latest data shows.

They took out 16,800 loans, down 1% compared to the previous quarter and 3% on the fourth quarter 2015, the figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) also show.

A breakdown of the figures show that first time buyers borrowed £910 million, down 3% on the third quarter but up 5% on the fourth quarter last year while home movers borrowed £1.3 billion, up 1% quarter on quarter but down 7% compared to a year ago.

Remortgage activity totalled £870 million, down 2% on the third quarter but up 10% on the same quarter last year.

‘First time buyer lending continues to show healthy annual growth in Scotland. Overall, the picture is of a steady market, with affordability comparing favourably with the UK as a whole,’ said Carol Anderson, CML Scotland chair.

First time buyers in Scotland typically borrowed £99,800 compared to £135,000 in the UK overall, and this was almost unchanged from the £100,000 average the previous quarter. The typical income multiple in Scotland of 3.03 also compared favourably to the UK average of 3.56.

Affordability metrics for home movers saw the typical amount borrowed in the fourth quarter was £140,000 compared to £172,500 in the UK overall, but up from £135,300 the previous quarter.

The average household income of a home mover was £50,700 compared to £54,900 in the UK overall and this was down from £51,000. This meant the typical home mover income multiple in Scotland was 2.80, up 2.76 from the previous quarter and the UK average of 3.29.