According to the report, first-time buyers made up 22% of new advances in Q4 2016, coinciding with an increase in high LTV lending, although this remains significantly lower than the pre-crisis level. However total residential lending fell by 2.6% compared to the previous quarter to £62.8bn.
Since the first quarter, the share of BTL lending has stabilised at a lower level and accounted for 13.9% of residential home loans transactions in Q4. The share of BTL in the total balance remained at 15.6%.
The data also shows that around 31% outstanding mortgages are still paying interest at rates of BBR + 3% or higher.
However in general, customer margins are narrowing with around 55% of new advances at less than BBR +2%, and just 13% of new loans at more than 3% over the base rate.
The proportion of total loan balances in arrears decreased to 1.3% at the end of Q4 2016, the lowest level since the series began. The outstanding balance in arrears is now £17.2bn.
