Mortgage record broken in January
There is no sign of a slowdown in the UK housing market
Mortgage lending has hit a record high for the month of January, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
Gross mortgage lending was £26.8m in January, 16% higher than for the same month in 2006.
The CML figures were a record for any January, but were down by 6% on the £28.5bn lent in December.
Separately, the British Bankers' Association (BBA) said consumers had paid a record £500m off their credit cards during January.
We may continue to see robust mortgage figures in the near future, but expect these to fall back as the impact of recent rate rises feeds through
Andrew Gill, BSA economist
However, at the same time, the BBA said that the amount borrowed through loans and credit cards had increased by £500m.
In effect, consumers seem to be favouring loans over credit cards rather than acting to reduce their overall level of personal debt.
Housing market
The CML said January's mortgage figures showed mortgage lending was "robust" and expected "this strength to continue over the next few months".
Meanwhile, figures released by the Building Societies Association (BSA) echoed those of the CML.
The BSA said that lending and mortgage approvals had hit an all-time high for the month of January.
There were few immediate signs at present of a long predicted slowdown in the UK housing market the BSA added.
"Indications of a slowing [housing] market are not coming through in building society mortgage figures yet," Andrew Gall, BSA business economist, said.
"We may continue to see robust mortgage figures in the near future, but expect these to fall back as the impact of recent rate rises feeds through," Mr Gill added.
SOURCE: BBC News
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