The latest mortgage approval figures have just been released by the Bank of England (BoE) showing that there were some 66,964 mortgages approved in November of last year.
While this is down slightly on the previous month it remains some way above the forecasted figure of 65,400 and close to the 12-month average up to February 2020 of 66,700.
Kimberley Gates, head of corporate partnerships at Sirius Property Finance, said: “The stamp duty holiday helped spur a huge flurry of homebuyer activity for much of 2021 and so a steady decline in mortgage approvals was always likely to materialise following the final September deadline.
“However, this decline should be viewed as a return to pre-pandemic normality rather than a sign of dwindling health and the market continues to defy expectation and exceed industry forecasts where topline performance is concerned.
“While this year is unlikely to bring the same frantic market conditions as the last, we don’t expect there to be a significant reduction in buyer demand and therefore any further notable decline in mortgage approval levels.”
Joshua Elash, director of property lender MT Finance, added: “These are positive numbers for the property and mortgage sectors as we kick-off the new year, with the Bank of England reporting that mortgage debt for individuals increased to £3.7bn in November. This tells the story of a market finding its feet after the end of the stamp duty holiday in September which led to October’s significant drop.
“Approvals for house purchases are also now close to the 12-month average up to February 2020. Approval for remortgaging remains low although we expect this to bounce significantly in the coming months as consumer concern over a rising base rate will persuade more borrowers to tie themselves into a fixed rate on a longer-term basis.
“December’s data is likely to be stronger yet, although it will be interesting to see how the now seasonal concerns over another lockdown may have dampened the momentum of the bounce back.”
