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Mortgage demand `up 12% in July`

28/08/2007

Gross mortgage lending figures rose by 12 per cent in July, compared with the same period last year, new statistics show.

The amount lent to home buyers last month reached £21.3 billion, with remortgaging the likely cause of the high figures due to interest rate rises, the British Bankers` Association (BBA) claims.

During July, 182,950 mortgages were approved, with the average loan for house purchase reaching £156,900 – a 13 per cent increase on last year.

Borrowing on personal loans also rose, by £0.2 billion, while spending on credit cards during the month reached £7.6 billion, an eight per cent increase.

David Dooks, BBA director of statistics, said: "With customers seeking to replace deals or fix their mortgage costs, increased remortgaging activity boosted the banks` lending in July.

"Lower approvals volumes simply reflected the seasonal pattern, so we expect the stable trend in the banks` lending to continue over the next couple of months," he added.

Earlier this month, the Bank of England held interest rates at 5.75 per cent, partly to ease the pressures on lenders. The Bank`s next interest rate decision will be taken on September 6th.

Many debts unaffected by base rate cut 09/01/2009 - Yesterday, many borrowers welcomed the Bank of England’s base rate 1.5% base rate – an historic low 08/01/2009 - Today’s base rate cut by the Bank of England’s Monetary Gas price cuts expected 07/01/2009 - Energy company Scottish Power has announced the launch of a Personal debt about £1.5 trillion 07/01/2009 - The UK’s personal debt stands at around £1.5 trillion, according