Fixed-rate
mortgages accounted for 71 per cent of all
borrowing for
house purchase and
remortgaging in April, according to
research .
The regulated
mortgage survey, conducted by the
Council of Mortgage Lenders, shows a two per cent rise from March and is 17 per cent higher than the same month in 2005.
An increasing popularity of
fixed-rate mortgages reflects attractive deals currently being offered by
mortgage providers, states the Council of
Mortgage Lenders .
Its survey also shows that mortgages
account for 46 per cent of all
loans in April, which is up from 43 per cent in March.
Remortgages accounted for 36 per cent of all loans, which is slightly lower than the previous month's figure.
Michael Coogan,
director general of the Council of Mortgage
Lenders, said: "Today's
data confirms that the
market is in good shape. The strong take-up of
fixed-rate deals is encouraging because they give consumers confidence in their
mortgage payments and allow them to plan ahead financially.
"It is also interesting to see that while both
first-time buyers and
movers are borrowing a greater multiple of their
income to
get a mortgage, their
payments as a proportion of income are lower than in the same period last year.
However, experts at
Moneysupermarket recently suggested that
tracker mortgages may offer the
best value for
UK residents looking to
find a mortgage .
