Some lenders 'loosening their criteria for FTBs'

16-Feb-2009

For prospective first-time buyers (FTBs), lending data released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) this month might not have been happy reading.

The mortgage industry trade association showed that a typical FTB had to put down a deposit of 22 per cent in December to secure their first property, the highest proportion of a home's value in 34 years.

However, Richard Hair, past president of the National Association of Estate Agents, believes some lenders are now starting to loosen their purse strings.

"We have noticed through our mortgage brokers, an easing of that in that it is now conceivable to go and borrow 85 per cent without being heavily penalised," Mr Hair said.

This is a "very welcome sign" for Britons looking to take out a mortgage to get on to the housing ladder in the current economic climate, he added.

His comments come after the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' latest house price index showed that 16 per cent more of its members reported a rise rather than a fall in new buyer enquiries during January.

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