Over the course of recession and right until now, the property market has been in an ailing state and this applies to all type of property.
This was due to the effects of, and also to the aftermath of the recession which resulted in many people being afraid to ether buy their first property or to move house because the lack of personal economic confidence as well as that of the country as the whole.
As fewer poeple than normal were buying property, the number of mortgage applications inevitably fell correspondenlly, as of course mortgages are the loans required to buy a property.
Due to this lack of confidence, the homeowner loans of secured loans and remortgages were also at a low ebb.
A remortgage is only a new mortgage taken out by different mortgage provider on an exsiting property which can be for the same amount or for a higher sum than the original, the funds of which can be used for many purposes.
Therefore for several years now the demand for property, mortgages, remortgages and secured loans, which depend on the housing market were not in great demand.
Now it looks like the tide may be turning, as the National Association of Estate Agents are reporting a considerable increase in the number of people registering their interest in properties both new and old with local estate agents.
At the same time, things are looking more optimistic, with the statement by the Council of Mortgage Lenders that mortgages went up by more than a fifth by 21% last month.
This figure includes remortgages by homeowners hoping to secure a better mortgage deal, especially as there are strong rumours that interest rates are set to rise in the very near future. An interest rate hike is very unwelcome news after several years of the lowest Bank of England Base Lending Rate in history of half of one percent.
The total amount of mortgage and remortgage business arranged in March was the highest since Novermber of last year, and the sums borrowed are eleven point three billion pounds. However it is to be hoped that our feelings of optimism are not too soon as the amount of remortgages and mortgages advanced in March of last year was higher than this March, standing at eleven point five billion pounds.
Remortgages have faired better than mortgages, as in February they acheived their highest level for the last two years.
However although the housing and remortgage market is showing slight signs of improvement, there is still a long way to go before they reach their pre recession level.