The new year holds promise for
mortgage holders,
mortgage lender Bradford &Bingley believes.
Commenting on figures released by the Council of
Mortgage Lenders (CML) this week, the
mortgage lender says an "encouraging upturn" emerged towards the end of 2005.
This was despite the fact that this period is traditionally "quieter", according to Bradford &Bingley's mortgage development manager, Duncan Pownall.
Home buying and
remortgaging are "strong", he says, following a recovery in buyer activity and many mortgage holders having to
find a remortgage after cheap
fixed rate mortgage deals expired.
"Looking forward to the new year, the picture is encouragingly healthy," Mr Pownall told Mortgage Introducer, adding that the "main fundamentals that underpin borrowing activity are expected to remain stable".
He says mortgage affordability is still high and the mortgage lender foresees an
interest rate reduction of 0.25 per cent in the first six months of next year.
"We also predict sustainable growth in
house prices of between two and three per cent over the course of next year."
