Mortgage Approvals at New Low

Figures from the The British Bankers' Association (BBA) for August, suggest net mortgage lending rose only by £2.1 billion; less than half the average rise over the previous six months. Consumer credit rose by £0.4bn in August, slightly above the previous 6 month average of £0.3bn. Personal deposit growth continued to be weak and the annual growth rate declined by 0.7% to 4.0%.

Approvals for house purchases 64% lower than a year ago, 21,086 mortgages versus 58,564 in August last year. The number of mortgage approvals is down from 22,239 in July to the lowest figure since the figures began being collected in September 1997.

Approvals for remortgaging in August were 28% lower than last year, at 47,765. This was the lowest level since early 2001.