CML expecting no immediate rush in home purchases

The Council of Mortgage Lenders CML has predicted a slow January and February in terms of housing market activity.

According to the organisation, the end of the stamp duty concession appears to have encouraged a surge of home purchase applications last month.

With stamp duty now returned, the market will take some time to start moving in 2010, the CML said.

CML economist Paul Samter claimed that the mortgage market ended 2009 "in much better shape than it started", but it still looks like "a slow haul back to meaningful levels of activity".

He commented: "It should be no surprise if January and February this year appear particularly slow, if we are correct in our view that many buyers rushed to beat the stamp duty concession deadline in December."

The Bank of England has reported this week that a total of 59,023 loans were approved in December 2009, down from 60,045 in November.

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2010-02-02 13:08:12 © Moneyextra.com