ABSTRACT
The nature of the mortgage market in Britain has changed substantially over the past few years. Until the end of the 1970s, building societies were regarded as virtually monopoly suppliers of mortgage finance. Moreover, the mortgage market was almost continually short of funds, and it was accepted that one had to wait in a queue for a mortgage and to accept whatever loan terms were dictated by the building society. The changes in the mortgage market over the past few years are a part of a much wider change in the retail, wholesale, and, indeed, international financial markets. Within a few years the situation has been reached in which mortgages are freely available, on demand, from a variety of institutions to those able and willing to pay the price.
