Data from firm Broker Conveyancing found the number of instructions made by both house purchase and remortgage customers were up a third.

Between April and June the number of purchase instructions was 35% higher than the first three months of the year. Remortgage instructions grew by 29% during the same period.

While both sections of the market are growing, the firm said that the number of remortgage customers was still some way behind the purchase side of the market.

It said purchase deals accounted for 67.5% of all business, up by one percentage point compared to the previous quarter.

Harpal Singh, managing director of Broker Conveyancing, said remortgage instructions continued to lag behind.

“Despite some considerable improvement in remortgage instruction levels on the first quarter of the year, our ongoing experience is that purchases continue to be the main driver of the market and will continue to do so for some time,” he said.

Singh added that the stricter rules introduced under the Mortgage Market Review (MMR) had slowed the market.

“There are many reasons for this not least the stricter affordability criteria ushered in by the MMR with the result that a number of existing borrowers are unable to secure refinance, but also the fact that base rate remains at a historical low and until we begin to see movement here we are likely to see activity at these levels.”