UK housing market mortgage approvals have been surging for years, but in the last several months things have begun to turn. Many experts blame this on uncertainty surrounding the long term as well as the short term estimates of the market. Brexit negotiations, struggling wage growth, and a recent increase in interest rates have created a market with many waiting to see what will happen next. One sector remains quite stable, though. The sector leading the way and dominating most mortgage lending is remortgage.

According to the latest market data, mortgages are now trending at a slower pace than in the past few years. For a third consecutive month mortgage approvals slid and are now sitting at a 15-month low. Although this parallels house price growth falling slightly one group is taking notice. First time buyers are finally seeing some relief and making it possible for them to attain the first rung on the property ladder.

UK Finance data for November totaled 39,507 mortgage approvals which is a decrease of 3% from the month of October. Approvals totaled more than 40,000 in the month of October which was a decrease from the total in September of 41,550.

Compared with remortgage however, other mortgage approvals are far in the background. During the past six months remortgage approvals have averaged more than 27,000 per month. During the month of October, remortgages totaled more than 34,000, which is an increase of 37% over the same time last year.

A spokesperson from UK Finance commented on the latest data, saying: "We expect this [trend] to continue in the short term as our remortgage approvals data shows a large increase of over a third in approvals for October as customers locked in deals ahead of the expected rate rise."