Compared to a rather subdued January market, February lending grew by 11.49 per cent for new purchases, however Hamptons was quick to point out that the figure is by no means as strong as it was in February 2007.
New buy-to-let lending suffered a dramatic 16 per cent drop, with a further tailing off in buy-to-let remortgage products albeit far less pronounced.
This has been put down to the Chancellor's CGT announcement concerning the removal of taper relief once an investor has owned a property for more than ten years, coupled with affordability issues and attitude to risk preventing amateur investors from entering the market.
Jonathan Cornell, managing director at Hamptons International Mortgages was encouraged by the findings: "I think that the recent base rate cuts in December and February have instilled some much-needed confidence back into the sector and this, combined with the fact that house prices have fallen in the last month, has generated optimism amongst homeowners to step onto the property ladder.
“However, I would imagine that next month we will see yet another decline in home purchase as a result of lenders tightening criteria and exiting from the 100 per cent mortgage arena.
"This week’s Budget decision regarding stamp duty may be the only thing first-time buyers can cling to at the moment.”
