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Latest Mortgage Lending Figures

Figures released by the British Bankers Association (BBA) show that the mortgage market slowed during April, with mortgage lending rising by £4.6 million as apposed to the £4.8 million for February.

Despite this month-on-month slowdown, these figures are still above the previous six-month average which was £4.5 billion. Year on year however the amounts are showing a downturn, sitting at some £1.1 billion below the amount recorded by the seasonally-adjusted net mortgage lending figures.

These figures seem to point to a continuing slowdown in the housing market after a period of sustained growth, however people should be careful not to read too much into these figures. Looking to the wider picture loans approved for house purchase in March reached a value 19% greater than seen in February – a high for the previous six months.

A spring upturn is expect by many in the mortgage field, and the figures from March seem to suggest that this will be the case, however the BBA’s statistics director David Dooks said “It is too soon to say whether the slowing housing market seen over the previous six months or so is now picking up”.

Trying to predict what will happen with the mortgage market over the coming years is as difficult as it has ever been, however it does seem that any changes in either growth or decline will be gradual, with no experts currently believing that a crash is on the cards, which is good news for homeowners across the country.