What does this year have in store for the UK mortgage market?

Last year was a tough year for those first-time buyers looking to step onto the ladder, unless the Bank of Mum and Dad was happy to provide a considerable deposit to assist. Existing homeowners enjoying the low bank Base Rate at a mere 0.50% were also facing hard times, as some realised the fact that house prices were dropping away leaving minimal equity in their properties. Doom and gloom.

However, consumer confidence in the mortgage market was stable in the UK towards the end of 2011, with the closing months showing stronger lending activity and steady housing transactions. Figures from the British Bankers Association show that there was a 7% increase on lending in December, with November 2011 levels at £8.4bn. Bearing in mind that this followed a period of low levels of transactions, the CML "does not read too much significance into these recent figures".

2012 brings hope - we have the Olympics and Queen's Jubilee to raise our spirits and give the country a well-needed boost. Lenders seem to want to lend more than they did this time last year. If you have a reasonable deposit in your back pocket or equity in your property and you have not missed any payments on credit commitments, you are in a prime position to be able to secure yourself a good deal. Buy-to-lets are becoming more and more favourable - those who have the money invest in property whilst prices are low have the peace of mind that there is no shortage of tenants.

Where will the market be standing at the end of 2012 - who knows?