Recommendation 27

We support the efforts of the government and regulators to ease prudential and financial regulations, encourage growth and support first-time buyers, as long as adequate care is taken when doing so. In particular, limiting mortgages to 4.5 times a borrower’s income locks too many people out of owning their own home by preventing them from accessing mortgages large enough to cover the current level of house prices, so it is a welcome step for the government, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority to ease the 15% flow limit rule so that it applies industry- wide instead of to individuals lenders. (Conclusion, Paragraph 115)