Activity recovers across both purchase and remortgage in Q3: conveybuddy

Conveyancing distributor, conveybuddy, has released its Q3 2026 statistics, showing a strong return for remortgage activity alongside continued quarter-on-quarter growth in sale and purchase transactions.

The latest figures show remortgage instructions increased by 19% during Q3 compared to Q2, while sale and purchase instructions also increased by 8% over the same period.

Overall, the combined number of purchase and remortgage instructions increased by 12% quarter-on-quarter, while survey instructions also recorded further growth during the three-month period, increasing by 13% compared to Q2.

During Q3, remortgage activity increased significantly again, with September proving particularly strong as borrowers and advisers responded to a further period of mortgage product withdrawals and pricing changes. conveybuddy had seen a similar catalyst in March when geopolitical tensions led to an increase in swap rates and lender funding costs.

conveybuddy recorded a 61% month-on-month increase in instructions for its all-inclusive remortgage product during September compared to August.

Across Q3 as a whole, all-inclusive remortgage instructions increased by 22% compared to Q2 and finished the quarter just 4% below the total recorded during Q1, which included the March spike.

The latest figures also show Nationwide became the most-used lender among conveybuddy's all-inclusive remortgage cases during Q3, accounting for almost one in four instructions at 25%. The mutual was followed by Barclays, Santander and NatWest.

conveybuddy said the move to the top of the table by Nationwide was likely to be due to it offering remortgage borrowers a choice between free standard legal fees or £500 cashback across its remortgage products.

Harpal Singh, CEO at conveybuddy, said: “Our Q2 figures gave us a clear indication that the sale and purchase market was proving more resilient than some of the commentary at the time suggested, while remortgage activity had settled following the exceptional spike we saw in March. Q3 has moved the story on again, because we have now seen strong growth in remortgage instructions, and importantly, that has not come at the expense of sale and purchase activity.

"September was particularly notable, with our all-inclusive remortgage activity increasing by more than 60% in a single month and returning close to the levels we saw in March, as advisers and their clients clearly responded to another period of lender product withdrawals and pricing changes.

"However, this isn't simply a remortgage story. Sale and purchase instructions increased by 8% quarter-on-quarter, surveys were up 13%, and we also saw almost 10% growth in adviser usage. That suggests there continues to be a healthy level of activity across different parts of the mortgage and property market, and advisers remain central to supporting those clients with their conveyancing and survey needs.

"The Nationwide figures are also interesting, with the lender now accounting for one in four of our all-inclusive remortgage instructions. Borrowers have a choice between free standard legals or £500 cashback with Nationwide, and advisers are clearly playing an important role here in helping clients understand the different conveyancing options available to them, rather than assuming the lender's legal service will automatically be the right route.

"Overall, these are encouraging figures, both in terms of the activity we are seeing across the market and the continued growth in advisers using conveybuddy. It is particularly positive to see more advisers recognising the importance of providing conveyancing advice to their clients, not only because it gives them greater control over the process and helps deliver the right outcome, but because it also allows them to provide a broader service and generate additional income from the clients they are already servicing.”