The numbers of people remortgaging reached a record low of just 24,000 in January, a drop of 15 per cent on the previous month- and down 47 per cent on a year ago, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.
Experts suggested as many as 270,000 borrowers a month are now paying their lender’s standard variable rate as a result of their initial deal coming to an end.
They claimed home owners were being either better off slipping onto their lender’s SVR or were unable to find a new deal elsewhere due to banks and building societies tightening their lending criteria.
The CML also revealed the number of mortgages approved for those buying a new home hit 32,000 in January, down 49 per cent on the previous month, but up 38 per cent on the same period a year earlier.
Michael Coogan, director general of the CML, said: “We expect lending over the coming months to remain weak as uncertainty over of the state of the economy and the upcoming election are likely to continue to hold back housing market activity.”
