There were 18,100 loans to first-time buyers worth £2.2bn in June, 24% higher by volume and 29% higher by value than in May.
June’s first-time buyer numbers were 8% lower by volume and value than the year before.
Overall, there were 46,700 loans for house purchase worth, £6.7bn in June, up 22% in volume and value from May but down 11% by volume and 13% by value on June 2010.
Remortgaging was unchanged in June totalling 30,700 loans worth £3.78bn. Unlike lending for house purchase, remortgaging was up 10% by volume and 9% by value on June 2010.
There was little change in lending requirements for either first-time buyers and home movers in June. First-time buyers, on average paid a 20% deposit, unchanged since February.
The popularity of fixed-rate mortgages continued to climb in the second quarter with 63% of borrowers opting for a fixed-rate, compared to 60% in the first quarter and just 46% in the second quarter of 2010.
The trend away from interest-only mortgages continues for all borrowers with 87% of house purchase loans in June taken out on a repayment basis, up from 86% in May.
The CML says this is likely to persist as future house movers and remortgagers continue to take out mortgages on a repayment basis.
Paul Smee, director general of the CML, said: “Whilst there are clearly financial uncertainties ahead, it is encouraging to see more house buyers surfacing at the start of summer. Recent increases in Bank of England approvals figures also show that more completions are expected in July, so the more encouraging numbers may persist for a while.”
Chris Gardner, director of Obligo, said the June spike in first-time buyer mortgage advances reflected the surge in products at higher loan to values and the more favourable criteria of lenders.
"There are now plenty of competitive 90% products in the market and we are also seeing more lenders move into higher LTVs, which is driving rates down further,” he said.
"In recent months, more lenders have even returned to the 95% LTV range, although these products are still in relatively limited supply.
"What we have also seen in recent months is the gradual realignment of vendor and purchaser expectations.
"Sellers are increasingly accepting that they have to lower their asking prices if they want to find a buyer, while buyers understand that they cannot go in with unrealistic offers.
"The result of this realignment is increased transactions at all LTVs, which are reflected in the June data.”
