LMS’ Monthly Remortgage Snapshot shows a £300 average monthly payment increase for those who remortgaged in April and 37% of borrowers increased their loan size during the month.

The figures also reveal that 51% of those who remortgaged took out a 5-year fixed rate product, the most popular product in April.

Of those surveyed, 27% said their main aim when remortgaging was to lower their monthly payments – this was the most popular response.

LMS chief executive Nick Chadbourne points out that the anticipated Easter lull was primarily responsible for pushing down instruction and pipeline figures.

“These seasonal trends always play a part in market activity, although we expect that there are also increasing numbers of borrowers opting for product transfers instead of remortgages amid the affordability squeeze. With borrowers primarily focused on lowering their monthly payments, many are also more inclined to bide their time and wait for better products to become available”.

However, Chadbourne expects instructions and the pipeline to increase again in May.

“With the Bank of England raising the base rate to 4.5%, more of those who are on trackers or SVRs will look to switch to a more competitive fixed rate product and the introduction of innovative products such as Skipton’s 100% mortgage will only encourage this further”.

He concludes: “Aside from that, lenders are generally relaxing their affordability criteria thanks to there being more economic certainty and confidence in employment and house prices, playing into the prediction of an increased pipeline.”