Bills may force Brits to commit less to mortgage

Tuesday, July 13th 2010

Britons may be facing a raft of bills, if new mortgage figures are anything to go by.

The Council for Mortgage Lenders (CML) says those borrowing in order to purchase a home in May saw their repayments make up the smallest amount of their income in 35 years.

While the property market during the month seemed to improve - with the number of loans up two per cent and the value three per cent higher than in April - people appeared less willing to commit their earnings to paying back a mortgage.

One reason for this could be the pressure to meet other charges and bills, such as energy and water supplements.

"House purchase lending continues its recovery but positive comparisons with equivalent months a year ago look unlikely to continue," explains CML's director general Michael Coogan.

The increase in completed mortgages could be the result of more offers on the market - a trend noted recently by Ben Wilkie, editor of What Mortgage magazine.