Following the announcement from HMRC today that the provisional non-seasonally...

28 April 2023

Following the announcement from HMRC today that the provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in March 2023 is 94,870, 14% lower than March 2022 and 26% higher than February 2023 this is a comment by John Phillips from national broker firm Just Mortgages.

[Just Mortgages is one of the largest mortgage brokerages in the UK with more than 600 mortgage advisers working on either an employed or self-employed basis.]

John Phillips, national operations director at Just Mortgages said: “the drop in transactions from March last year was no surprise after ten consecutive interest rate rises but house prices continue to rise year on year and transactions increased by an encouraging 26% from the previous month. This is great news for borrowers who have been tightening their belts to maintain mortgage payments.

“The Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers’ housing costs (CPIH) fell below 9% last month which bodes well for a cessation in future interest rate rises and we are seeing lenders dropping mortgage rates which will help generate new lending and offer a lifeline to those balancing a household budget.

“One of the concerns of 2023 was for the payment shock for borrowers coming off fixed rates but with competitive deals being launched daily, feedback from our brokers across the country suggests that this will be manageable for most households. Although the cost of living has risen sharply over recent years, we’re finding that people’s faith in the housing market remains high and new mortgage enquiries are strong across the country.”