SOME home sales have fallen through and estate agents have seen enquiries drop since the economic crisis that triggered Liz Truss’s resignation.

One mortgage broker told the Daily Echo he had seen customers abandon their plans to buy since interest rates rose sharply in the wake of the mini-budget which the government later abandoned. 

Mortgages which were previously offered with interest fixed at 3.5 per cent for two years are now being offered at more than six per cent.

Stuart Gregory, managing director of Lentune Mortgage Consultancy in Lymington, said the spike was caused “in more than part” by the actions of the government.

“We’ve seen clients stall on their purchase plans, including first time buyers and buy to let investors,” he said.

“Some lenders have changed their affordability checks which can require the monthly payments to be stress-tested to an interest rate of eight per cent.

"With some buy to let calculations, the rental income received now needs to cover the mortgage payments on an indicative interest rate of 7.49 per cent even if the interest rate for payments is lower.”

He said residential borrowers could struggle to afford payments as fixed-terms deal ends.

Tenants of buy-to-let landlords could also face rent rises as landlords struggle to re-finance their properties, he said.

“There is a rocky road ahead for everyone – what is important is that borrowers get good advice from a mortgage broker,” he added.

Miles Tarpey, director of Slades Estate Agents in Highcliffe, said: “In the early stages of the shock reaction to the mini-budget, we had a few instances where people tried to re-negotiate the price they were buying at, stating they were worried prices may drop and leave them overpaying. This was fairly short lived and low in numbers.

“New buyers coming through the door have dropped in numbers and therefore the number of sales we are agreeing are also falling and are a little down on our figures from this time last year.

“Prices seem to have levelled off and new stock coming to the market is increasingly being listed at a more realistic figure compared to the inflated levels we were seeing earlier in the year.

“We would say that there is still plenty of life and confidence in the property market but that there are a number of people sitting on the fence waiting to see what happens next with interest rates.”