Few mortgage approvals in August

The Bank of England has revealed that mortgage approvals plummeted in August.

[UKPRwire, Thu Oct 04 2007] Figures from the Bank show that 109,000 deals were improved in the month, a marked fall from the 115,000 approved in July.

It is the lowest number of approvals in a month - barring April 2007 - since April 2006 and is a clear sign that recent base rate rises are having an impact on the housing market.

Commenting on the figures, Howard Archer from Global Insight suggests that anyone wishing to sell their home should seek a quick property sale in order to avoid running into financial difficulty as the market slows down.

"Going forward, housing demand seems set to lose further significant momentum as it is increasingly pressurised by the affordability pressures stemming from higher interest rates [and] modest real disposable income growth," he said.


"Mortgage rates are rising further as a consequence of the liquidity crunch pushing up money market interest rates, while the Northern Rock crisis may hit confidence and increase consumers' wariness about buying a house.

"Significantly, the Bank of England reported that the average standard variable mortgage rate rose to a nine-year high of 7.69 per cent in August. Furthermore, a number of lenders have since raised their tracker mortgage rates," added Mr Archer.

Julian King of National Homebuyers adds, "People looking for a quick property sale should look outside the traditional 'open market' route.

"The increasing cost of selling your property, plus the added concern of falling property values means that a fast property purchase option is the only real way of achieving a cost-effective sale".

National Homebuyers are the UK's leading fast property sale firm, guaranteeing to make a formal offer to purchase any property in the UK from vendors who need a quick property sale.

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