Business

Number of mortgage approvals for home-buyers falls to five-month low

The number of mortgage approvals being made to UK home-buyers fell back in August from an 18-month high seen the previous month
The number of mortgage approvals being made to UK home-buyers fell back in August from an 18-month high seen the previous month The number of mortgage approvals being made to UK home-buyers fell back in August from an 18-month high seen the previous month

THE number of mortgage approvals being made to home-buyers in Britain and Northern Ireland fell back in August from an 18-month high seen the previous month, Bank of England figures show.

Some 65,545 mortgage approvals were made for house purchase in August, down from 67,011 in July, the Bank's Money and Credit report said.

July had seen the highest monthly total for house purchase mortgage approvals since the start of 2018, but August's figure was the lowest since March this year.

Despite the weakened numbers, the Bank said mortgage approvals remained within the narrow range seen over the past three years.

Meanwhile, the annual growth rate in consumer credit, which includes borrowing using credit cards, personal loans and overdrafts, slowed in August to 5.4 per cent - the weakest reading since early 2014.

The report said: "This remains considerably lower than its peak of 10.9 per cent in November 2016."

The extra amount borrowed on credit cards weakened in August to the lowest levels seen since December last year, the Bank said.

Howard Archer, chief economic adviser at EY Item Club said: "It is possible that housing market activity may have got a recent modest lift from house-buyers looking to get their move sorted out before Brexit is due to occur on October 31 given the major uncertainties as to what exactly will happen then."

He continued: "However, the fact that mortgage approvals fell back to a five-month low in August suggests that the upside for housing market activity currently remains limited amid major uncertainties."