Buyers looking to purchase a home or remortgage in the run-up to the festive season face a market with 41% fewer products than a year ago, data from Octane Capital shows.  

The specialist lender’s research estimates there are 5,398 different mortgage products currently on the market. It says there are roughly 2,631 products aimed at first-time buyers, 2,569 focused on home movers, and 2,302 targeting remortgagers.

It adds that those looking to remortgage have been hit with the biggest reduction in choice, down 37%, while home movers and first-time buyers have seen the level of products aimed at them slump by 31% and 29%, respectively.   

The data comes after chancellor Jeremy Hunt calmed international debt markets last month, by largely reversing former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s tax-cutting mini-budget in September, which saw the number of products on the market fall sharply.   

However, the lender’s study shows that the level of products on the market is still up by 18% when compared to this time two years ago at the height of the pandemic market boom.   

It adds that FTBs enjoy a 45% increase in product choice, compared to 2020, with home movers, up by 38%, and remortgagers with 20% more choice, than two years ago.   

Octane Capital chief executive Jonathan Samuels says: “Much has been made about the reduction in available mortgage products in the last month or so and a high degree of market uncertainty has spurred many lenders to reduce their range until such time that the fog has lifted.   

“As a result, there continues to be substantially less choice for the nation’s homebuyers who may be searching the market this Christmas. However, the shelves aren’t as barren as the figures may suggest and there remains a good deal more products currently available when compared to 2020.  

He adds: “At the same time, those lenders who have reduced their range have largely done so with a strategic reset in mind. Now that rates have started to once again reduce and confidence is returning to the sector, we can expect an uplift in product availability come the new year.   

“So, for those who aren’t able to find the right mortgage this side of Christmas, it’s worth sitting tight for a few more weeks, as chances are, you’ll have better luck in January.”