The total of £9,780 million in September was significantly lower than the £11,801 million in August . However, after repayments and redemptions totalling £5,941 million, net lending rose by £3,839 million to £373,175 million, and in seasonally adjusted terms, September’s underlying rise of £3,667 million was only 9 per cent down on August’s rise of £4,026 million.
This downturn was matched by a drop in the number of new loans approved in September, with 167,960 loans approved for a total value of £9,751 million, which was 12 per cent by number and 14 cent by value lower than in August.
Approvals for house purchase were 16 per cent by number and 17 per cent value lower than in August, as there were 75,209 loans approved for a total value of £5,710 million. In addition, the average loan value fell, by £600 to £75,900, but this was still 13 per cent higher than a year earlier.
Other areas of weakness included approvals of loans for re-mortgaging, which numbered 43,943 and had a total value of £3,148 million. These were 11 per cent lower by number and 10 per cent lower by value than in the previous month.
Peter Vipond, head of research and statistics at the BBA, said: "September usually sees a fall in mortgage demand, but this year saw much weaker figures than in previous years. Given that we have seen gross lending increase in every month since March, in contrast to summer and autumn last year, when demand gradually eased, it is not surprising that we have eventually seen a fall. Fewer mortgage approvals in the month suggest that future lending will also moderate. In contrast, total consumer credit, after taking seasonal movements into account, was consistent with the recent trend, although card borrowing was stronger than expected."
