The value of buy-to-let mortgages granted in the UK for Q3 rose by eight percent to £4.2 billion (S$8.21 billion) from £3.9 billion (S$7.63 billion) in Q2, according to data released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) yesterday.
For the first three quarters, the value of buy-to-let lending rose by 19 percent to £11.8 billion (S$23.05 billion) compared to £9.9 billion (S$19.34 billion) over the same period last year.
However, buy-to-let activity is recovering from a low base and is still subdued compared to the period before the credit crunch. The value of buy-to-let lending for 2012 is expected to be slightly more than a third of its 2007 peak.
Nonetheless, banks granted 18,680 mortgages for home purchases and 15,360 for refinancing. Respectively, they comprise 54 and 45 percent of the total, but their values were evenly split. £2.03 billion (S$3.97 billion) was advanced for purchasing and the same amount for remortgaging.
On average, the maximum loan-to-value ratio for buy-to-let loans remains unchanged at 75 percent, while the average minimum rental cover stands at 125 percent.
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