Despite trailing off towards the end of the year gross mortgage lending hit record levels during 2007, according to figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

Although the organisation is warning that the market is weakening, it reported gross lending totalling £362billion in 2007. That was well above the anticipated final figure for the year, and five per cent higher than total lending for 2006.

But the CML warned that gross mortgage approvals dropped significantly towards the end of the year as the global credit crunch entered its fourth month. As a result lenders are restricting the amount they are prepared to lend as well as withdrawing many types of UK mortgages, especially buy-to-let and self-certification products. That is evidenced in the figures for gross lending for December 2007, which at £22.6billion was down 25% on the November total, and is the lowest recorded monthly amount since May 2005.

Director-General of the CML Michael Coogan speaking to the BBC said that the recent decline in interbank lending rates and the prospect of further reductions in base rates during 2008 should aid the market, although lending volumes are likely to remain weak for the next few months. He also said that despite funding constraints caused by global economic conditions, the UK mortgages market is still highly competitive, and offers good deals to better risk borrowers.

However, although there is still a flourishing market for those who are considered a good risk, anyone who doesn’t have an excellent credit record is likely to be denied further borrowing and could struggle to obtain a competitive mortgage, as banks and building societies adopt an incredibly risk averse approach to their lending.

There is further evidence that the housing market is indeed weakening from surveyors and estate agents. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is concerned that property prices are falling at a rate not seen since the 1990s housing crash, with 49% of its members reporting more falls than rises in December, the worst on record since November 1992.

Estate agent Right Moves has also reported that asking prices for properties in England and Wales have fallen for the third month in a row, and latest research from financial giants Halifax and Nationwide showed that annual price growth has slowed to around 5%.

To get an idea of how weak the market is becoming, you could compare mortgages granted in December against the number approved in November; down a staggering 25% in only one month.

Most analysts believe it will take a lot more than one interest rate cut in January for the market to recover to anywhere near mid-2006 levels, and they are keeping their fingers crossed that the market hasn’t entered into a meltdown.

Remortgage is the process of paying off one mortgage with the proceeds from a fresh mortgage using the same property as collateral primarily to secure a more favorable interest rate from another lender. The reasons for remortgaging may be many, like reducing the size of repayments, to raise capital or to consolidate other debts.

Merely switching from one product to another with the same lender is not a remortgage but it is the removal of one legal charge over a property and its substitution with another from a new lender.

People having a costly and unsuitable existing mortgage with a poor credit history can go in for remortgage thus getting a better interest rate and lower repayment than the existing one. This helps to save lot money over the term as well as on a monthly basis. Regular monitoring of the credit report and any improvements will give an indication of the most suitable time to apply for remortgage. Interest rates on bad credit remortgages are higher than average and vary from one lender to another. Therefore it is advisable to compare a number of mortgage rates to find a suitable interest rate and payment. This can be achieved through online to save a lot of time, tension and energy.

Sources that offer remortgage are banks, building societies, individual lenders and mortgage brokers. A wide variety of remortgage products are available like fixed rates, capped rates, cash backs, flexible, discounts etc.

Remortgaging usually involves certain costs like application fee, solicitor’s fee, surveyor fees, redemption fee of the older mortgage and broker fee. Whatever be the type of mortgage the buyer should be aware of the interest rate and the period in case of a fixed or capped rate. Variable rates vary over time and therefore in case of a discount, standard variable rate has to be paid. Annual percentage rates reflect the cost of the loan and helps in comparing different deals. Remortgages can be done as many times as possible as long as it saves money. In a remortgage, there are restrictions on the amount that can be had depending on the purpose for which it is intended.

The basic difference between a remortgage and a ********* is that a remortgage is accepting a loan from a new lender where as a ********* can be provided by the existing lender or the new mortgage provider. Mortgaging can also serve to release equity in the borrowers home, which is the difference between the market value of a home and the amount the borrower still owes.

The procedure for obtaining a mortgage is fairly simple and the paper work involves proof of income, debts and expenditure. Although remortgage can be successfully accomplished in four to six weeks’ time, the duration may vary depending upon other lender and specific circumstances surrounding the property.