Mortgage availability increases over the past month

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by Kay Murchie

According to financial information service, Moneyfacts, the number of mortgage products have increased over the past month.

The news will undoubtedly be welcomed by first-time buyers - many of whom have been locked out of the market as a result of having little or no deposit.

At the start of this month, there were 1,798 mortgage deals available which required deposits of between 0% and 40% - this represents a rise of 6% on February and almost 70% more than a year ago.

However, those with little or no deposit at all may still struggle as there are still very few mortgages available with just 0% or 5% deposits.

But according to Moneyfacts, there are currently 489 deals that require a 10% or 15% deposit - this a significant 90% rise on a year ago when there were 258 such products on the market.

Michelle Slade of Moneyfacts comments: “There are a growing number of mortgage providers who are becoming a little more accommodating with their credit criteria and this bodes well for consumers who will benefit from a growing competitive mortgage market.

“It is pleasing to see that the average mortgage rate is falling at the same time as deposit requirements are getting smaller,” she added.

The lack of mortgage availability has been highlighted in mortgage approval figures - which recently dived to a 10-year low.