Mortgage criteria searches remained consistent from August to September, with strong activity in the private rented sector (PRS) contributing to this, the latest data from Legal & General’s (L&G) SmartrCriteria tool reveals.

The data shows searches for ‘let-to-buy’ grew by 23% from August to September.

Meanwhile, searches on behalf of landlords using gifted equity climbed by 32%, while those for portfolio landlords grew by 18% in the same period.

Searches for houses of multiple occupancy mortgages grew by 53%, while top slicing saw a 6% rise.

Elsewhere, the data shows that searches for homeowners keen to remortgage after just six months rose by 15%. 

This coincided with the Bank of England’s seventh consecutive base rate rise on 22 September, which L&G says suggests that some borrowers may have looked to lock into new deals ahead of further rate rises. 

Criteria searches that consider a property’s energy performance certificate (EPC) climbed by 16%, as awareness around the potential savings afforded by an energy-efficient home continues to grow.

For alternative products, the data reveals a 24% increase in searches for retirement interest-only (RIO) mortgages. 

In addition, criteria searches on behalf of buyers with missed mortgage payments increased by 11%.

Legal and General Mortgage Club director Clare Beardmore says: “The number of criteria searches remained promisingly consistent from August to September despite various economic hurdles.”

“However, though the volume may be similar, the type of searches shows that the market is changing. September saw another large uptick in remortgage activity, as many five-year fixes ended.”

“Anecdotally, it also seems that many homeowners are looking to remortgage and lock into a new deal as soon as possible, rather than wait until their current deal ends, driving activity levels further.”