Help to Buy scheme drives major recovery in mortgage buying
• 50% increase in the proportion of properties bought using mortgages in the first two months of 2014• Help to Buy scheme funding is thought to be largely responsible for this
• Other influences are an increase in general market confidence and the availability of low interest buy-to-let mortgages
After a period of time where the property market has been dominated by cash buyers, the start of 2014 has seen the pendulum swing back into the realm of the mortgage buyer.
60% of properties were bought with mortgages in February 2014, compared with just 40% in December 2013.
Donna Houguez, Quick Move Properties, explains: “We are now seeing the true impact of the Help to Buy scheme as successful offers made in the last quarter of 2014 are reaching completion stage.
“Bolstering this is the general mood of optimism in the economy – buyers feel more secure in their employment and are thus willing to take on the financial responsibility of a mortgage.
“We are also seeing an increase in buy-to-let investors taking advantage of the low interest mortgages available to them at present.”
Quick Move Properties provides one-of-its-kind data to property analysts to help with assessment of the housing market.
Data calculation: Quick Move Properties sells hundreds of properties each year and the method of purchase (cash or mortgage) is recorded for each transaction.
