Mortgage approvals increasing

25-Feb-2008

Statistics have revealed that mortgage approvals are on the rise which will be welcome news for first-time buyers about to enter the property market.

The British Bankers' Association (BBA) has suggested that this could mean the downturn in the market that many feared may not be as bad as predicted.

Mortgage approvals rose in January to 44,288 from 42,343 in December, but were still around a third less than the same time last year, according to the BBA.

Allan Monks, economist at JP Morgan, commented: "With credit conditions likely to continue tightening, and the growing expectation that house prices will fall this year, we would still expect to see some further declines in house purchase activity looking forward"

He added that the slowing of the property market could well be nearing its end which will be reassuring to first-time buyers who may have been feeling apprehensive about purchasing a property.

The BBA is the association for the UK banking and financial services sector.


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