In the third quarter of 2015 the Bank recorded £62.1bn of residential loans, up from £52.5bn in the second quarter of 2015 and £55.9bn in the third quarter of 2014.
Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “This spike in demand has been driven by record low mortgage rates – a result of increased lender competition and the continually low base rate.
“The average rate on gross advances in the third quarter was the lowest seen since the series began in 2007, and borrowers are clearly eager to take advantage of the excellent deals on offer.
“More and more borrowers have been fixing their rates in order to secure the best possible deals, with the proportion opting to fix climbing above the 80% mark for the first time this year. Such attractively priced rates won’t be around forever, but those in a position to take on a long-term fix will benefit from a longer period of savings.”
Gross advances above 90% loan-to-value decreased by 0.7% on a quarterly basis.
Murphy added: “Although increased affordability is fantastic news for many consumers, the continued decline of above-90% loan-to-value lending is concerning.
“The proportion of lending in this category fell below 3% in Q3, and it is important that there are plenty of higher LTV products on as house prices continue to rise. Without such products, lower income borrowers will struggle to get a foot on the housing ladder.”
