Lending stood at £13.2bn in February, which was down 1.5% from January.
Mortgage lending was 33% higher in February 2016 than the same month last year, British Bankers Association figures have revealed.
Lending stood at £13.2bn in February, which was down 1.5% from January.
Richard Woolhouse, chief economist at the BBA, said: “Mortgage borrowing remained buoyant in February. It appears that borrowers are continuing to try to get ahead of the increases in stamp duty for buy-to-let and second home buyers scheduled to come into effect next month.
“Consumer confidence is also robust. Households are increasingly taking advantage of low interest rates by taking on more unsecured borrowing.”
In February mortgage approvals were 26% higher than a year ago, as remortgaging rose by 31% and house purchase lending was 20% higher.
Richard Sexton, director of chartered surveyor e.surv, said: “The mortgage market has seen a super start to 2016 with the stamp duty deadlines meaning more landlords are pushing through their property purchases before the April deadline.
“Underneath that immediate trend there is a strong base of homeowners remortgaging to take advantage of record low fixed rate deals.
“The bottom of the market is seeing sustainable growth too, as low inflation and rising wages help first-timers to save. Landlords, remortgagors and first-time buyers are the triad of market sectors boosting lending levels.”
He added: “The Mortgage Credit Directive is the next milestone on the horizon; the new rules it brings will come into force by the end of March.
“The mortgage market is used to weathering these regulatory changes, so it should be a case of business as usual, but the application process for loans will again be tightened. This is a further move to help ensure any further improvements in the market are sustainable. However, the more immediate problem is supply.
“Any improvements to house purchase lending will be capped by the low number of homes on the market. More homes are needed from sellers for the housing market to really stretch its legs.”
