The latest MBT Affordability Index has shown that the affordability gap, where no lender is able to meet the amount requested by a broker, remained at 16% in September.

This is similar to the 15% overall gap recorded by MBT in August; the affordability gap peaked in February, when there were no lenders able to meet the loan amount requested by a broker on 21% of cases.

However, whereas in August the affordability gap for home movers, specifically, was 15%, this rose to 18% in September.

Tanya Toumadj, chief executive at MBT, said: “The affordability gap shows how likely it is that brokers will be able to source a lender with the ability to meet the loan requirements of their client.

“The only area where the affordability gap grew was for home movers, and this shows the impact of increased asking prices for property on client expectations. However, even in this segment, the gap was still lower than earlier in the year.”