Latest numbers from the Council of Mortgage Lenders
+7.0% vs -0.2% prior m/m
August mortgages £22.50bn vs £21.07bn in July
The highest August since 2007's £33.6bn
CML's senior economist Mohammad Jamei says;
"Widely voiced fears in recent months about the housing market have proved to be wide of the mark. Prospects for house purchase activity post-referendum look slightly subdued, when compared to late 2015 and early 2016. However, sentiment in the market recovered in August. This is reflected in stronger-than-expected transaction figures, and in our gross lending estimate.
This recovery in sentiment is likely to be down to a number of different factors, including the Bank of England's monetary stimulus and its introduction of the Term Funding Scheme in August. A subsequent uptick in approvals is anticipated, albeit still at levels lower than earlier this year as affordability constraints and lack of properties on the market for sale continue to bear down on borrowers. The Bank also continues to indicate another rate cut on the cards, if medium term prospects remain unchanged."
It was warned that house prices would take a tumble after the Brexit vote but what we've seen so far has been marginal. The Brexit situation hits two different demographics, normal folks who live here and foreigners who use UK property for investment purposes. Brexit means more to those foreign investors in the short term than it does your average Brit. Investors are also largely putting their money into the high end and commercial parts of the property market.
