Mortgage Approvals Up During March

It revealed that a total of 27,685 home loans were approved in April, which represents a four per cent increase on the figure from the previous month.

During March, 26,671 mortgages were approved.

However, mortgage lending fell from £3.4 billion during the 31-day period to £2.7 billion in April.

Responding to the figures, BBA statistics director David Dooks said: "The house purchase part of the mortgage market appears to have stabilised, with slightly more approvals coming through, although April's weak net mortgage lending reflects the lower number of approvals in previous months."

He added that consumer behaviour is still being dictated by the uncertain financial conditions.

Meanwhile, figures produced recently by the Council of Mortgage Lenders suggested that its members lent a total of £10.4 billion in mortgages last month.