Mortgage approvals fall

THE number of mortgage approvals for house purchases fell in September for the first time in six months, official figures have revealed.

Loan approvals fell by 2.6 per cent to just under 51,000 between August and September – in its first fall since April – figures from the Bank of England showed.

The Bank of England said there had been an easing back in mortgage approvals in September, from a high of high of 52,347 in August to just 50,967 last month.

Net mortgage lending, which includes remortgages, rose by £300 million in September, having increased by £600m the previous month, reflecting a trend towards property owners taking advantage of record low interest rates to pay off some of their debt.