First-time-buyers (FTB) made up more than 50 per cent of all mortgages arranged in the first quarter of 2013 in the capital.
Around 9,400 mortgages were taken out by FTBs – unchanged from the same point last year, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
The council said although at first glance flat growth from 2012 may appear disappointing, last year’s figures were bolstered by a stamp duty holiday – meaning there was an increase in normalised demand.
Although the average loan-to-value ratio for FTBs remained at 75 per cent in London – this was still lower than the UK average of 80 per cent.
Paul Smee, CML director general, said: “These figures show that higher house prices and tougher affordability constraints in London have not had a significant impact on consumer appetite to buy or move home in the capital.”
Separately the total number of remortgages across the UK dropped by 19 per cent from this point last year – indicating that people had more capital available to avoid a forced sell-off of housing assets.
