The Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) has reported that the average number of mortgage cases placed per year increased to 96 in the first quarter of the year, up from 89 in Q4 2025.

The association stated in its latest Mortgage Market Tracker report that this increase was largely due to a "sharp wave of front-loaded borrower demand" triggered by geopolitical turmoil.

IMLA said the Iran conflict caused volatility in swap rates and pushed inflation expectations higher, leading economists to revise their forecasts of bank rate cuts. As a result, mortgage borrowers began to accelerate remortgaging and purchase plans.

The Bank of England’s gross secured lending data tells a contrasting story, as lending fell from £78bn to £68bn quarter-on-quarter. This has been attributed to the lag between application activity and completed transactions, as well as growing caution in the wider economy.

Despite this, IMLA found that intermediary confidence recovered modestly in the quarter, but this sentiment fell away in March as the Iran conflict continued, with the sharpest deterioration recorded in confidence about the outlook for the wider mortgage industry.

Advisers’ confidence in their own businesses remained more resilient, and was the strongest of the three confidence measures at a net score of 95.

Confidence in the outlook in the intermediary sector stood at 82, while confidence in the broader mortgage industry was 79. All three remain a little below pre-COVID norms.

Furthermore, the proportion of decisions in principles (DIP) resulting in a DIP accept eased to 83% from a three-year high of 86% recorded in Q4, while the DIP-accept-to-full application held firm at 73% for the fourth consecutive quarter.

Executive director at IMLA, Kate Davies, said the latest data shows how much of the activity was "driven by external shock rather than underlying market momentum".

She concluded: "The Iran conflict and the swap rate volatility it triggered appears to have pulled a significant volume of mortgage business forward into the first quarter - business that might otherwise have been spread more evenly through the year. Intermediaries responded with their customary professionalism and efficiency, supporting borrowers through a period of genuine uncertainty.

"While overall conversion rates have eased from the strong Q4 2025 levels, they remain within a reasonable range, and the stability of the DIP-to-full-application rate across four consecutive quarters is a reassuring signal of underlying process quality across the sector.

"It is worth noting that lenders’ willingness to revisit affordability criteria following the FCA’s guidance changes has been a quiet but meaningful tailwind, and one that we expect to continue supporting volumes through the rest of 2026. Intermediaries will, as ever, be at the centre of helping borrowers navigate a complex and fast-moving market."

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