UK mortgage approvals jump to two-year high

Approvals for mortgages in the UK rose to their highest in two years in August, while consumer borrowing increased more than expected, according to data from the Bank of England on Monday.

Net mortgage approvals rose to 62,500 in August, up 2,400 from July and the most since August 2022. Market forecasts were for a smaller increase to 63,800. Meanwhile, approvals for remortgaging increased from 25,200 to 27,200 over the same period.

Borrowing of mortgage debt increased to a net £2.9bn, up from £2.8bn the previous month and 0.7% higher than last year – the sixth straight month of annual growth.

The data coincided with figures from Nationwide on Monday which showed that annual house-growth surged to 3.2% this month – the highest rate since November 2022.

"This resurgence in the housing market follows a series of rate cuts for fixed-rate mortgages by high-street lenders, however, we’re not out of the woods yet," said Aaron Milburn, UK managing director at credit intelligence provider Pepper Advantage.

"Borrowers are still grappling with higher rates than previous and their remains a lack of available housing. While welcomed, this influx of new mortgage holders will increase pressure on the existing housing supply and push prices even higher."

In other news, the BoE also said that net borrowing of consumer credit by individuals rose to £1.3bn, up from £1.2bn previously, driven by higher net borrowing through 'other' forms of consumer credit (such as car dealership finance and personal loans), which rose from £0.7bn to £0.8bn, while net borrowing through credit cards was little changed at £0.5bn.