Valuation levels soar, but mostly for remortgaging

Remortgaging activity has soared in recent weeks, outperforming all other areas of the housing market.

New research from Connells Survey & Valuation claims the number of valuations for remortgaging rose 25 per cent in August compared to July. On the back of this growth, the number of remortgage valuations is now up by 102 per cent compared to August 2014 – a doubling in the space of 12 months.

Total valuation activity was more muted in August. 

The number of valuations across all sectors, including remortgaging, rose by seven per cent compared to July. This leaves activity up by 48 per cent compared to August 2014, but this is driven in large part by remortgaging.

The number of valuations for existing owner-occupiers looking to move home has grown by only three per cent since July; even so, this leaves activity on behalf of home movers up by 30 per cent compared to August 2014.

A similar picture emerges for first-time buyers. The number of valuations carried out in August for those looking to take a first step onto the property ladder rose just one per cent month-on-month but 31 per cent on a 12 month basis.

In the only section of the market to see a drop in August activity, valuations for buy to let purposes dipped by five per cent on July. Despite this, compared to a year ago, the total number of valuations carried out for buy to let investors rose by 29 per cent.