Remortgaging levels at their lowest since 1999

Net mortgage approvals, meanwhile, hit their lowest level since the start of this year – decreasing to 43,300. There was also a drop in the net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals, going from £1.1bn in August to -£900m. Additionally, gross lending fell from £19.4bn to £18.6bn – with this coinciding with a rise in gross repayments from £19bn to £19.5bn.  

Alongside this, the effective interest rate on newly drawn mortgages rose by 19 basis points to 5.01%, while the rate on the outstanding stock of mortgages saw an eight basis point increase – going from 3.06% in August to 3.14% in September.  

Reflecting on this, Barrows and Forrester’s managing director James Forrester said: “It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster ride for the nation’s homebuyers of late, with rates climbing consistently since the back end of 2021, moving the goalposts of purchasing affordability as a result. 

“So you can forgive them for growing a little weary now that we’re approaching the final months of 2023 and a freeze in interest rates simply hasn’t been the sufficient boost the market needed to spring back into life as we approach the end of the year.

“We expect these lethargic market conditions will persist until next year, however, we don’t believe a significant market correction is on the horizon.”