The number of mortgage applications has risen 6% month on month, and 45% in a year, with transactions increasing 4% in October. London's transactions, however, have continued to surge ahead the rest of the UK, rising 9% over the month.
David Plumtree, Chief Executive at Sequence, comments:
“The appetite to buy property across the UK has risen to record levels, with almost seven new buyers for every new property coming onto the market. This has impacted on property prices as competition for every new instruction intensifies and we have seen the average house price rise by 3% in October which equates to £5,583 in one month alone and 11% annually.
“In London where close to 14 people are competing for every property, prices have risen by 4% on month and 10% annually. This has taken the average price of a London property above the £400,000 threshold for the first time since our records began.
“In spite of rising prices, there has been a surge in mortgage applications across the board, demonstrating that buyers are still willing and able to buy. Increasingly attractive mortgage rates and incentives such as Help to Buy are fuelling the drive in demand and as long as this continues, we can expect to continue to see prices rising.”
