New figures about first time buyers - squeezed out of the market according to the NAEA - show they are in reality back in force, according to Connells' survey and valuation team.
The total number of valuations the team carried out in July 2014 was 14 per cent higher than in the same month last year, much of it apparently thanks to FTBs. First time buyer activity was up a resounding 23 per cent since July last year.
The number of valuations for existing owners on the move was not as strong, just 12 per cent more than in July last year. Plenty of householders are content to sit on an appreciating asset, often sticking with a mortgage they know. Jumping in the deep end just before interest rates change direction feels like a leap of faith suggests Connells' corporate services director John Bagshaw.
Remortgaging activity in July was up 11 per cent from a year earlier, and accounts for just over a quarter of all valuation activity in the market according to Connells.
Meanwhile buy-to-let valuations activity increased a modest three per cent.
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