Interest-only mortgage stock fell by 17% in 2024, according to data from UK Finance.
The number of pure interest-only homeowner mortgages outstanding at the end of 2024 was 541,000, down 18.5% on 2023.
There were also 174,000 partial interest-only homeowner mortgages remaining at the end of the year, a fall of 13%.
Since 2012 the total number of interest-only mortgages has dropped by 78% and their value has gone down by 61%.
Loans with higher loan-to-values (LTVs) over 75% fell by 25.7% in 2024.
These higher LTV loans now make up just 5% of the total, compared to 36% in 2012.
The number of interest-only loans set to mature by 2027 fell by 67,000 in 2024 to 120,000, a decrease of 35.8%.
Charles Roe, director of mortgages at UK Finance, said: “In 2024, customers with interest-only mortgages continued to pay on or ahead of schedule, with 150,000 fewer mortgages on interest-only terms at the end of the year than at the start.
“Lenders’ proactive communications strategies continue to ensure that those with historic interest-only loans have plans and the ability to repay, with tailored help available for those who do not.
“The interest-only book has shrunk in size each year since the end of the Financial Crisis and is now around one fifth of the number seen in 2012, when these data were first collected.”
Roe added: “It is particularly encouraging that the number of interest-only loans at higher loan-to-value ratios has fallen sharply – around twice the overall contraction – with a similar movement in those loans set to mature over the next two years.
“Those customers whose loans are theoretically most at risk continue to redeem ahead of time, reducing the risk profile of the remaining interest-only book.
“The small number of borrowers who do not repay immediately upon maturity remains very low, and data consistently indicate the vast majority of these do in fact repay in full over the first few months following the end of term.”
He said: “As always, any customers worried about repaying their mortgage should contact their lenders early, who stand ready to help with a range of options to repay.”
