Gross mortgage lending 'down on last year'

Date:Thursday 23rd April 2009
Author: Max Freedman

Gross mortgage lending during the first quarter of this year fell compared with the same time last year, new figures show.

Produced by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), they reveal that lending over the three-month period totalled around £33 billion.

This was a fall of 29 per cent on the amount of money lent for property purchases during the same time in 2008.

According to the CML, the figure is broadly in line with its expectations for mortgage lending over 2009, which it predicts will amount to around £145 billion.

Commenting on the statistics, CML director-general Michael Coogan said: "While the market is beginning to show some signs of stabilising, housing transactions and lending are set to remain low for the foreseeable future."

Meanwhile, the CML also suggested that a seasonal fall in mortgage lending of around ten per cent is generally experienced between the fourth and first quarters.

The CML is a trade association for the mortgage industry, with members that provide around 98 per cent UK residential mortgage lending.