More first time buyers got a mortgage to get on the housing ladder in Wales in 2018, with industry data showing they increased by 4.3% in the final quarter year on year.
There were 4,800 new first time buyer mortgages completed and the £0.58 billion of new lending in the quarter was 7.4% more year on year while in 2018, there were 16,800 new first time buyer mortgages, some 1.2% more than in 2017.
The figures from UK Finance shows that this is the highest annual number of first-time buyer mortgages in Wales since 2006 when the figure stood at 16,900. The £2 billion of new lending in the year was 4.1% more than in 2017.
There were 4,400 new home mover mortgages completed in Wales in the fourth quarter of 2018, some 2.3% more than in the same quarter of 2017 and the £0.69 billion of new lending in the quarter was 6.2% more year on year.
In 2018, there were 15,800 new home mover mortgages, up 0.6% from 2017 and the highest number of home mover mortgages in Wales since 2007 when there were 25,600. The £2.5 billion of new lending in the year was 4.7% more than in 2017.
There were 5,400 new Welsh home owner remortgages completed in the fourth quarter, some 22.7% more than in the same quarter a year earlier and the £0.67 billion of remortgaging in the fourth quarter was up 28.8% year on year.
The data also shows that in 2018, there were 20,100 new home owner remortgages, some 12.3% more than in 2017, the highest annual number of remortgages in Wales since 2008 when the figures stood at 38,600. The £2.4 billion of remortgaging in the year was 16.3% more than in 2017.
‘The Welsh mortgage market saw a strong performance in 2018 with the number of first time buyers reaching a 12 year high. This growth has been aided by initiatives such as Help To Buy, and we look forward to clarity from the Welsh government on the future of this important scheme,’ said Julie Ann Haines, chair of UK Finance’s Wales Mortgage Committee.
‘Home owner remortgaging reached its highest level in the decade since 2008, as fixed-rate loans came to an end and customers locked into attractive rates,’ she added.
