April saw steady growth in mortgage lending and approvals according to UK Finance
Latest UK Finance – Household Finance Update – April 2018.
Gross mortgage lending in April is estimated to have been £20.4bn, 13.3 per cent higher than a year earlier. The number of total mortgage approvals has also risen and is 11 per cent higher, this increase is primarily driven by remortagage approvals which were almost 30 per cent higher than a year earlier.
Commenting on the data, Eric Leenders, Managing Director, Personal Finance at UK Finance said:
“April saw steady growth in mortgage lending and approvals, following a slowdown in activity the previous month. This was driven by strong remortgaging levels, as borrowers locked into attractive deals amid expectations of a base rate rise.
“Card spending has strengthened following a subdued March. Despite the recent fall in inflation and the squeeze on household incomes starting to show some signs of easing, consumer confidence remains relatively low.”