Purchasing activity hits highest level in 14 years

September 8, 2021 by Brendan O'Neill

Property Market

New data from UK Finance has revealed that house purchasing activity during 2021’s second quarter hit its highest level in 14 years, with the holiday on paying stamp duty being cited as the reason for this.

UK Finance published this data as part of its Household Finance Review, and it shows that house buying transactions hit 244,860 during the second quarter of the year. This includes both buyers securing mortgages to buy their first homes and those moving to a bigger home, and it is a huge increase on the total of 46,520 for the second quarter of last year.

According to the data, mortgages for those buying for the first time made up 112,340 of the total, while 132,520 came from mortgages for people upgrading to new, larger properties, and 32,400 were accounted for by buy-to-let mortgages.

It all adds up to the highest total in purchasing activity that the market has witnessed since 2007, with first-time homebuyers and buy-to-let landlords driving it. In addition to the holiday on stamp duty, the government’s Help to Buy scheme is likely to have also been a contributing factor among those purchasing their first homes.

Furthermore, UK Finance is stating that the levels of home purchasing activity across the first and second quarter of the year have reached the same level they were at before the Covid-19 pandemic, or have risen above it.

With more people than ever pursuing CeMAP training and becoming mortgage advisors, the fact that the housing market appears to be recovering well is particularly encouraging.