First-time buyers boost lending numbers Mortgage lending for new house purchases picked up in November, led by a rise in first-time buyers, according to new data. The number of mortgages advanced to first-time buyers increased by 8 per cent to 21,700 in November. This is the largest monthly total since the end of 2009, excluding last March when the end of the stamp duty holiday boosted activity. According to data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), the number of loans to first-timers was up 24 per cent in November compared to a year ago. The rise in mortgages for people taking the first step on to the housing ladder comes as rates have started to edge downwards for those with small deposits as a result of the government's Funding for Lending scheme, launched last August. A poll of lenders by the Bank of England, published this month, suggested it would become easier for would-be homeowners to access credit in the coming months. Banks said they were more willing to lend to first-time buyers and homeowners with relatively small deposits, in part because of FLS, which provides banks with cheap funds in return for commitments to extend loans to UK borrowers. Last week, several lenders cut the cost of mortgage deals targeted at first-time buyers, while Barclays launched a new 95 per cent mortgage. In November, 52,700 house purchase loans were advanced, up 6 per cent on October. However, the number of homeowners remortgaging fell in spite of a drop in the cost of borrowing as more lenders launched low-cost mortgage deals. According to the CML, 24,300 remortgage loans were advanced in November, a decline of 9.7 per cent from October and down by as much as a quarter compared to a year ago. "Encouraging activity in the first-time buyer sector in November contributed to an uplift in house purchase lending, suggesting that the underlying trend for year-on-year increases should continue," said Paul Smee, director-general of the CML.