The number of approvals for remortgaging was broadly unchanged, at around 49,400.
The number of mortgage approvals for house purchase, a leading indicator of mortgage lending, ticked up in April to around 66,300, The Bank of England’s Money and Credit data has found.
This was close to the average of the past two years and reversed the fall seen in March. The number of approvals for remortgaging was broadly unchanged, at around 49,400. The annual growth rate of mortgage lending remains unchanged at 3.3%, the level it has been at since August 2018.
Andrew Montlake, director of mortgage brokerCoreco, said: “Today’s buyer is spoilt rotten. Mortgage rates are obscenely low and, in the majority of cases, buyers are calling all the shots.
“While the passing of the 29 March Brexit deadline will have spurred some into action in April, a broader Brexit apathy is becoming stronger by the day.
“April was the month when activity levels for brokers started to pick up and this was confirmed in the Bank’s latest data.
“People are increasingly of the view that, even if prices fall in the short-term following a potential no-deal Brexit, in the medium-term they will reap the benefits.
“Remortgages have been driving activity for some time but over the past two months there has been a definitive pick-up in purchases.
“First-time buyers are still the most active demographic, but there’s now considerably more transactions further up the property ladder, too.”
Net mortgage lending was £4.3bn in April, slightly higher than the average of £3.8bn seen over the previous six months.
Net mortgage borrowing by households was strong for the second month in a row, relative to the recent past, in April at £4.3bn. Over the previous six months it averaged £3.8bn.
Richard Pike, Phoebus Software sales and marketing director, added: “It appears from the Bank of England figures this morning that remortgaging, which has had a big part to play in holding up the mortgage market in the last couple of years, has at last levelled out.
“Of course, for those people that took advantage of the stamp duty relief to move their current deals will have come to an end and we could see another uptick in the remortgaging figures next month.
“With household debt rising consistently remortgaging to a better, less expensive, deal is one way quick way to reduce household spend and even consolidate some debt.
“Conversely, the number of approvals for house purchase increased, which is a good sign for the whole market.As lenders offer better and better rates and deals, it is a good time for people to move up, or down, the ladder.”
Steve Seal, director of sales & marketing at Bluestone Mortgages, said: “A steady stream of lending continues to flow, with annual mortgage lending growth around the 3% mark.
“For borrowers, tighter competition is working in their favour in the form of low rates. However, while first-time buyers can benefit from Help-to-Buy and existing homeowners lock into these attractive remortgage deals, complex borrowers continue to face a number of hurdles.
“Highstreet lenders are often unwilling to serve customers with less than perfect financial credentials.
“Specialist lenders can help in these cases, but the problem is that many borrowers do not realise this, as they are offered little to no alternative of where to go if they are rejected by a high-street lender. Education is therefore essential.
“The industry needs to make borrowers more aware of all the avenues available, so they know exactly where to turn next.”
