Regional median LTV ratio for mortgage sales in the UK 2018 to 2023

The median loan-to-value ratio in the United Kingdom (UK) for sales made in the fourth quarter of 2023 was approximately 69.5 percent. This meant that the average mortgage covered 69.5 percent of the property sales price, leaving the home acquirer to cover the remaining 30.5 percent with their own savings. Regionally, it was North East where the highest average LTV ratio was seen, at 74 percent. 

Number of mortgage loans

In 2023, the number of mortgage sales (PSD) stood at just over 888,000, which was a decrease from the previous year when the number of mortgage sales dropped significantly. 

Mortgage interest rates

The vast majority of mortgage loans were taken out with fixed interest rates. A fixed interest rate is simply a mortgage where the rate of repayment is fixed. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) defines a standard variable rate as "the rate that is the lender’s underlying variable interest rate”. It is not surprising that fixed interest rates are the preferred option for so many borrowers - two, three, five and ten year fixed interest rates saw a continuous decrease in recent years, before surging in 2022.