Surge in mortgage approvals – Group Managing Director in the Sun

Mortgage approvals surged in July following coronavirus lockdown, showing a V-shaped recovery for the housing market.

The number of mortgages accepted for new house purchases jumped to 66,300 in July, up from under 39,900 in June.

It’s also almost seven times higher than the coronavirus low of roughly 9,000 approvals in May, according to new data by the Bank of England.

The figures are the highest since February this year and just 616 fewer than in July last year.

If you get approved for a mortgage, your lender has typically checked your individual circumstances including your credit history and decided that you’d be a good candidate.

The new figures are good news as the property market came to a near standstill earlier this year due to the coronavirus crisis.

Social distancing impacted people being able to view properties in person and estate agents being able to conduct valuations.

Hugh Wade-Jones, managing director of Enness Global Mortgages, added that the latest figures are “quite astonishing” given the position of the market a few months ago.

He said: “There is no doubt that the huge surge of buyer demand seen once the market reopened has been seriously turbo-charged due to the stamp duty holiday announced shortly after.

“With the combination of both causing buyers to return to the market at mass.”

The stamp duty break has added £30,000 to average property prices and sales have soared by 20 per cent, according to the Bank of England.

Rishi Sunak raised the stamp duty threshold from £125,000 a year to £500,000 a year in England and Northern Ireland on July 8, to boost the economy through the housing market.

The stamp duty cut could save buyers thousands of pounds in tax but critics have warned the tax break could push up prices as buyers now have more cash to compete with others to secure deals.

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