THE choice of mortgage for residential property buyers in the UK is now three times greater than in 2009 – with more than 12,000 different products last month.

This is a five-year high, according to the national index from the Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB), a leading independent mortgage broker.

November’s 12,032 products were more than three times the total available in April 2009 when it began tracking thee figures.

Using data from more than 500 brokers and 800 estate agents, the index showed activity slowing slightly with 10 per cent fewer mortgage applications in November than October after a surge between September and October.

Monthly application levels still remained 45 per cent higher in the first eleven months of 2013 than in the whole of 2012.

The growth in mortgage product numbers was fuelled by a six per cent monthly rise in the range available via brokers. This grew for the fifth successive month to 8,961, representing 74 per cent of the total range.

In contrast, the direct only product range fell for the second time in the last three months. November’s total of 3,071 direct only products was four per cent lower than in October and six per cent lower than in August.

The MAB says that this continues a trend over the last 12 months for a greater volume of mortgage products to be offered to consumers through brokers.

The data also shows that two year tracker rates hit record lows, with the average reaching 2.89 per cent in November, the lowest in over five years since MAB began tracking this data in June 2007.