Approvals for house purchases rose by 5%, yet for remortgaging they decreased by 16%, while for other kinds of approvals they plummeted by 30%.
The BBA suggested that the market is stabilising, as annual lending comparisons have narrowed in recent months.
Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “Despite August traditionally being a quieter period for the mortgage market, increased confidence among lenders and consumers shone through, resulting in a 15% annual boost in mortgage lending.
“Healthy competition between lenders means that consumers can take advantage of preferential rates, while MAB data shows that more than 12,000 products were available on the market in August: a post-credit crunch record high for consumer choice.
“While the remortgage market has not yet seen the same level of recovery as purchase loans – with overall remortgaging levels down on last year – we can expect to see activity increase as interest rate rises edge closer, making locking into a low rate deal at the top of consumers’ priorities.”
David Dooks, statistics director at the BBA, added: “When customers feel more optimistic about the economic outlook they are much more likely to take on new borrowing.”
