The twelve-month growth rate was unchanged at 0.8% in July. The three-month annualised growth rate fell to 0.5% in July, from 0.6% in June.
Within the total, net lending secured on dwellings increased by £0.1 billion, below the June increase of £0.5 billion and the previous six-month average of £0.8 billion. The twelve-month growth rate rose slightly in July to 1.0%, from 0.9% in June.
The three-month annualised growth rate decreased to 0.4%, from 0.6% in June. The number of loan approvals for house purchase (48,722) was broadly in line with the June figure (48,562) and the previous six-month average (48,546).
Approvals for remortgaging (26,951) were up on June and also higher than the previous six-month average (26,235), while approvals for other purposes (24,220) decreased in July and were also below the previous six month average of 24,831.
Commenting on the figures, Brian Murphy, head of lending at independent mortgage broker, Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “The Bank's July mortgage figures offer further evidence of a stabilisation in the level of home loans.
"We are likely to see a slight downturn in activity during August for obvious seasonal reasons but overall we expect loan volumes to remain at or around this level for the rest of the year.
"The October Spending Review — D-Day for consumer confidence — is approaching fast and many prospective borrowers are understandably being cautious. Only once the full extent of the cuts is known will borrowing levels move more decisively in any one direction.
"The appetite for fixed rate loans has risen consistently throughout the year, which suggests people are being more cautious in the run-up to the Spending Review."
Grenville Turner, chief executive of Countrywide, said: “It is a little surprising to see the rise in mortgage approvals, however, these figures cannot hide the difficulties facing the current housing market.
“Whilst our mortgage approval levels year to date have risen by 11% the stark reality is that getting a mortgage is tough as buyers continue to struggle to raise the deposits required or are put off by the interest rates attached to the high LTV mortgages.
“However there are glimmers of hope as a number of lenders appear to be increasing their lending appetite with an increasing variety of mortgage products becoming available.”
