This compares to an 11.6% rise in applications in March compared to February.
Mortgage applications in April were just 0.1% down on April 2010 although there was a slight fall in the number of new borrowers choosing fixed rate products, more than three quarters (76%) of all mortgage applications in April were still for fixed rate deals, compared to 80% in March.
This compares to just 52% of new mortgage applicants in April 2010 choosing fixed rate products.
The average loan size on mortgage applications in April was £124,328 compared to £127,546 in March, a decrease of 2.5%.
The average LTV on mortgage applications rose slightly to 70.5% in April from 69.9% in March, and the average deposit put down by a mortgage applicant in April was £52,024 compared to £54,923 in March.The average age of a mortgage applicant in the UK in April was 38 years.
Remortgages
Remortgage applications continued to drop off in April, falling for the second consecutive month, down a substantial 26.7% compared to the number of remortgage applications made in March. However, remortgage applications in April were still up 19.5% on applications made in April 2010.
REGIONAL MORTGAGE REVIEW:
Across the regions, mortgage applications were down in April, with the East Midlands the only area of the country where applications held firm. In the North applications were down 42%.
The picture was not so severe in other areas, but Wales and East Anglia still experienced a big drop off in mortgage applications, with numbers falling 22% and 21% respectively in April compared to March.
The average loan size (excluding London) on mortgage applications in April was highest in the South East at £163,988 and lowest in East Anglia at £85,121.
The oldest mortgage applicants in April were in the South West, averaging 42 years 3 months, while the youngest were in the West Midlands, averaging 36 years 3 months, a difference of six years in age of applicants between the respective areas. I
n terms of product type, 90% of applicants in Yorkshire & Humber chose fixed rate mortgage deals in April, compared to 69% of applicants in Wales and the South West. Average LTVs were highest in Yorkshire & Humber (77.7%) and lowest in the South West (65.9%).
Remortgages
For remortgages, 89% of applications in East Anglia chose fixed rate deals during April, compared to just 46% in the West Midlands. The average LTV on remortgage applications was highest in the South West (69.9%) and lowest in the North (55.4%).
Brian Murphy, head of lending, independent mortgage broker Mortgage Advice Bureau, said:
"April mortgage activity has been significantly curtailed due to the bunching of the four public holidays. The timing of this year's Easter break combined with the additional public holiday for the Royal Wedding and the May bank holiday saw business activity grind to a halt across the UK.
"During the first three weeks of April, mortgage activity was generally running at the levels experienced in March and February, but from 22nd April the market largely went into hibernation. following the announcment of Q1's fairly anaemic growth figures and an unexpected fall in Consumer Price Inflation, the majority of economic forecasters are now suggesting that any rise in the bank base rate is likely to be held off until August.
"As a consequence the number of borrowers remortgaging slipped from recent monthly activity levels, although numbers still remain significantly above the corresponding period in 2010 suggesting that more people feel rate rises are on the way.
"Not surprisingly, of those who are refinancing, more than two thirds are continuing to opt for the certainty of fixed rates."
Mortgage product availability improved further in April, and the number of deals available now is more than 20% above what brokers typically had access to at the beginning of this year, and more than 50% up on the same period twelve months ago.
Although borrower activity levels waned in the latter part of the month we witnessed quite a flurry of lenders re-‐pricing their products and this should ensure that those borrowers who are now re‐ engaging the market have both more choice and greater competition for their business.
LONDON MORTGAGE REVIEW:
The average LTV on mortgage applications (excluding remortgages) was 64.4% in April compared to 66.2% in March. The average mortgage loan size was £280,618 in April compared to £271,506 in March, an increase of 3.4%. The average deposit put down by a mortgage applicant in April was £155,124.
Mortgage applications (excluding remortgages) were down 42% in April compared to March and 58.2% of applicants chose fixed rate deals in April compared to 67.4% in March, a drop of almost 10%.
The average age of a purchase mortgage applicant in London in April was 37 years 5 months. On the remortgage side, the average LTV on remortgage applications in April was 51.8% compared to 52.6% in March, while the average loan size increased substantially from £237,110 in March to £255,401 in April.
