The number of first-time buyers borrowing at least 5.5 times income has more than doubled in the year since regulators amended lending rules, Stonebridge reveals.

The number of FTB home loans in the top loan-to-income (LTI) bracket increased by 142.2% to 7,621 in the year to the end of June, the first full year since lenders could issue more high-LTI mortgages.

The data, which Stonebridge obtained from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), reveals that FTB lending between 4.5 times and 5.5 times income has risen 36.1% to 48,839 in the 12 months since the rule change.

Meanwhile, combined high-LTI lending to first-time buyers of at least 4.5 times income climbed 44.7% year-on-year to 56,460.

The Prudential Regulation Authority and FCA invited lenders to apply for permission to exceed the LTI flow limit in July last year under proposed rule changes that became permanent this month.

The LTI flow limit had been used to cap the number of loans that individual lenders could make at over 4.5 times income to 15%.

The figures also reveal that other borrowers are taking advantage of the new regime.

The number of non-FTB mortgages at LTI ratios over 4.5 rose 56.6% annually to 58,835. Those between 4.5 and 5.5 times jumped 64.3% to 49,936, while those above 5.5 increased 24.1% to 8,899.

Total FTB mortgage sales in the year to the end of June 2026 edged up 3.1% to 375,657, while non-FTB mortgage sales were up 15.5% to 896,415.

Stonebridge chief executive Rob Clifford says: “More accommodating loan-to-income rules are proving to be game changing for large numbers of borrowers, particularly aspiring homeowners.”

“High LTIs don’t necessarily increase risk to lenders or borrowers, so these changes last year were roundly welcomed. They create more options for borrowers, wider freedom for lenders and a more fluid mortgage market that better serves everyone concerned.

However, Clifford adds: “They’re not a silver bullet. Higher borrowing won’t be right for everyone and, where one is being considered, borrowers’ financial circumstances need to be studied in detail.”

“The number of borrowers, the size of their deposit, their employment circumstances and arrangements to protect their ability to stay in the home should they become too ill to work all have to be carefully weighed.”