Here is a summary of the key changes and announcements in the mortgage market for this week. 

·      The Budget last week had an interesting addition for the mortgage market, with the introduction of the Help to Buy ISA. The scheme will allow first time buyer to save up for a deposit. For every £200 that the consumers saves, the Government will top the fund up with a tax free amount of £25. The bonus will be calculated and paid, when the person buys their first home. In London, the maximum purchase price allowed is £450,000 and the ISA itself will have a maximum monthly deposit limit of £200. The ISA is available for any first time buyer, so if you are buying as a couple/joint, which means you can have 2 ISA’s on this scheme.

·      Year on year figures for Jan 2015, show lending to first time buyers and home movers down but Buy to Let is getting stronger. In January, 19,000 First Time Buyers took out a loan, down 27% from December 2014 and 14% from January 2014. The value of the loans is £2.8bn. 22,400 loans were advanced to home movers, down 27% from December and 17% from January 2014. Buy to Let lending registered both monthly and yearly increases, with 18,200 loans in January, up 6% from December and 12% on January. The advances totalled £2.4bn for Buy to Let.

·      Owner of Kent Reliance BS and Prestige Finance, One Savings Bank increased lending, year on year by 89%. In year-end results, the bank confirmed it had advanced £1.5bn across all brands in 2014, up from £794 million in 2013.The groups loan book grew 29% to £3.9bn, with 52% lent to BTLs/SME, 45% to Residential and 3% personal loans.

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