Despite the Bank of England’s decision to hold the base rate last week, buyers steered clear of mortgage searches, according to the latest data from Twenty7tec.
The drop in activity was felt across the board, defying expectations that a pause in rate rises might boost borrower confidence.
Standard residential searches, which account for more than 70% of all mortgage searches, fell 9.4% compared with the seven-day average, with 50,500 searches recorded versus 55,714.
The most significant percentage decline was seen in remortgage searches, which fell 12.7% compared with the weekly average.
First-time buyer searches were also down sharply, falling 10.2% — indicating that affordability pressures and rate expectations are dampening demand among those looking to enter the housing market.
Buy-to-let searches were largely unchanged at 13,632, compared with the seven-day average of 13,717, giving landlords a slightly larger share of the overall market at 19.8%, up from 16.8% in August.
Nakita Moss, head of lender at Twenty7Tec, said: “The pause has certainly raised a few eyebrows, with many advisers expecting recent rate stability to boost borrower confidence. In fact, we are seeing the opposite.
“Standard Residential searches fell 9.4%, with first-time buyer searches down even more sharply at 10.2%. Remortgage activity saw the largest drop, falling 12.7%, which suggests some homeowners are holding off refinancing in the hope that a future rate cut will improve affordability.
“By contrast, Buy to Let searches were effectively flat, which is remarkable given the headwinds landlords have faced in recent months. Their share of the market is slightly higher than the seven-day average, showing that many are taking a long-term view and are less reactive to short-term rate decisions.
Moss added: “This looks like a market taking a breath rather than retreating. We expect a rebound in both residential and remortgage searches as pent-up demand is released, and advisers need to be prepared to have the data at their fingertips to give their clients the best options.”
