Mortgage Lending Up in February

Mortgage lending reaches £9.2 billion

Gross mortgage lending in February increased to an estimated £9.2 billion, a 6% rise from £8.7 billion in January, according to new data published by the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

The increase, which is unusual for the short month for February, is in contrast to January’s performance where bad weather the end of the Government’s stamp duty holiday is thought to have put-off potential home-buyers.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reported lending in February down by 6% on the £9.7 billion seen in 2009.

Upon the recent figures the CML report the first two months of this year broadly in line with their forecast for lending of £150 billion for 2010 as a whole.

CML economist Paul Samter commented:

“Given the short-term weakness and distortions in the housing market, in addition to signs of more properties coming onto the market, it was perhaps unsurprising to see falls in some of the monthly house price indices in February. With activity unlikely to pick up much in the short term, we would expect to see further modest volatility in the coming months.”

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ members are banks, building societies and other lenders who together undertake around 94% of all residential mortgage lending in the UK.