Mortgage lending highest-ever for July

18 August 2006

Gross mortgage lending reached £30.4 billion July, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders. That’s the second-highest figure on record and the highest-ever figure recorded for July.

The CML says mortgage lending in July was 6% below the £32.4 billion of lending in June, but 19% higher than the £25.5 billion of lending in the same month last year.

Michael Coogan, who’s the director general at the Council of Mortgage Lenders, said seasonal factors were continuing to support the housing market and house price growth. He said Bank of England data showed there was a strong appetite among borrowers for remortgages and other types of loan.

But he stressed that the effect of the Bank of England’s interest rate rise a fortnight ago – which caught some people by surprise – wasn’t reflected in today’s figures. He said: “With financial markets suggesting the possibility of at least one more rate rise before the end of the year, we expect to see more subdued lending over the coming months.”