The Number Of People Getting Mortgages Rises Sharply
The number of mortgages approved in the UK for people buying a home rose sharply at the start of spring, Bank of England figures show.
The number of loan approvals for house purchases rose 18% between February and March, rising from 44,100 to 52,000.
It reflects signs of greater activity in the mortgage and housing sector following a slump late last year.
However, the recovery remains relatively subdued with March's figure below the average.
The total number of approvals for house purchases reached 62,700 a month on average in 2022. Mortgage lending is also still well down in the last decade, excluding the sudden impact of the pandemic.
Activity slumped after the mini-Budget of September last year during Liz Truss's short term as prime minister. The promise of billions of pounds of tax cuts without explaining how they would be paid for sparked turmoil in financial markets and drove up borrowing costs.
Mortgage rates hit a 14-year high but have since fallen close to the level seen ahead of the mini-Budget. Before and after that event, the Bank of England has been raising interest rates to try to bring down inflation, which charts the rising cost of living.