More people opting for bad credit mortgages

Published: November 29, 2007

More and more consumers in the UK are considering bad credit mortgages, a new study has suggested.

Analyst Mintel carried out a survey which suggested that 1.5 million consumers in the country are now considering sub-prime mortgage deals.

It added that a further four million consumers are considered by lenders to be 'high risk' and could need bad credit mortgages in the near future.

"The focus over the last few months has very much been on sub-prime borrowers, but they are only the tip of the iceberg," explained Toby Clark, a senior finance analyst at Mintel.

The report also found that the UK market for non-standard lending (bad credit mortgages and remortgages) is now worth £125 billion annually - up by 9.6 per cent since 2006.

"Demand for non-standard mortgages will continue to grow as people's financial circumstances become ever more complicated due to rising divorce rates and the growing popularity of self-employment," Mr Clark explained.