27 April 2009
The number of mortgages approved for house purchase fell by 7% during March, the British Bankers' Association says.All measures of mortgage lending were slightly weaker during the month than they had been in February, with the value of net lending also declining, the association said.
A total of 26,097 mortgages were approved for house purchase following a 16% jump in loans to 28,024 in February. Total mortgage advances eased to £8.9bn in March, the lowest level since April 2001, and down from a recent six-month average of £10.4bn.
Hometrack said consumer confidence remains fragile. Meanwhile, house prices fell at their slowest rate for more than a year during April. The average cost of a home in England and Wales dropped by 0.3% with only 32% of postcode districts reporting price falls,
compared with 59% in February, according to housing intelligence group Hometrack.
There was also a 15% rise in the number of sales agreed, while the number of potential buyers registering with estate agents increased by 6% during the month, and by 32% during the past quarter.
The figures point to a return to the market of housebuyers. But the group warned without the return of first time buyers there would be no broad recovery. Hometrack said the increased sales levels were being driven by cash investors and the buyers of family homes who had large equity stakes in their existing properties.
Source: uk.news.yahoo.com