"Banks continue to support household borrowers, providing almost £8 billion of mortgage lending in February"
- BBA statistics director, David Dooks
The number of mortgages approved in the U.K. dropped unexpectedly last month, confounding expectations for a modest increase. The British Bankers' Association said that lenders granted 30,506 approvals in February, down from 31,983 a month earlier. Analysts, however, expected mortgage approvals to improve to 33,600. A report also showed that the number of re-mortgaging and other loans were down by 15% and 38% from February 2012, respectively. The decline was mostly provided by relatively weak demand for loans and overdrafts, while businesses are showing unwillingness to borrow money until more certain trading conditions emerge.
"Banks continue to support household borrowers, providing almost £8 billion of mortgage lending in February. But low interest rates allow home owners more scope to increase repayments on their mortgages and reduce the outstanding amount," BBA statistics director, David Dooks commented on the report.
"As has been the case over the last three years, the prospects for the London market will have an important bearing on overall house price growth in 2013. London continued to provide important support to headline trends in 2012," said Richard Donnell, director of research at Hometrack.
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