The number of new homeowners who successfully secured a mortgage on their first property was up by 8.1 per cent month-on-month in May, a new study reveals.
Meanwhile, the number of landlords taking on new buy-to-let mortgages fell by 9.8 per cent over the same period.
According to the figures, which come from UK Finance, new mortgage lending hit £5.4 billion in May – a 12.5 per cent rise.
A total of 32,200 new first-time buyer mortgages completed over the course of the month, as aspiring homeowners took advantage of Government initiatives such as Help to Buy to secure their place on the property ladder, the report reveals.
However, just 5,500 new buy-to-let mortgages completed during the same month, with the overall value of lending in this area down by almost a quarter (22 per cent), at £700 million.
Jackie Bennett, of UK Finance, said that the mortgage market enjoyed a “pre-summer boost” in May, with first-time buyer lending and remortgaging activity both strong.
However, she said that recent tax changes affecting the likes of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) and mortgage interest tax relief still appeared to be deterring new buy-to-let investment.
“Purchases in the buy-to-let market continue to be constrained by recent regulatory and tax changes, the full impact of which have yet to be fully felt,” she said.