UK Mortgage Lending: CML Publishes Strongest December Lending Figures on Record

Gross UK mortgage lending fell by 6% in December to an estimated £26.3 billion according to the latest data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders. However, this was 25% stronger than the £21 billion achieved in December 2004 and is the strongest figure for December on record. The figures also show that gross lending in 2005 totalled £287.5 billion, down by only 1% on the record £291.2 billion in 2004.

Lending typically declines towards the end of the year, but the fall in December was less than in previous years. The CML commentated that those who thought lending would fall sharply in 2005 based on the performance of the first half of the year were wrong. Confidence in the housing market was supported by the realisation that short-term interest rates had peaked and the downward trend in fixed-term rates throughout much of the year, resulting in stable house prices. Furthermore the second half of 2005 was characterised by strengthening housing market activity and increased mortgage lending. We expect this trend to continue into 2006 as mortgage approvals continue to rise. Against this background, house prices should remain resilient in the coming months.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders' members are banks, building societies and other lenders who together undertake around 98% of all residential mortgage lending in the UK. There are 11.6 million mortgages in the UK, with loans worth around £942 billion.

http://www.mortgage-loan-uk.net offers commercial loans, bridging loans and personal secured and unsecured loans along with online conveyancing. A database of over 400 general buy to let listings and a buy to let top 10 is maintained and updated daily. A range of mortgage calculators are also available for the benefit of online clients. All form processing is secure on First Mortgage Trust's dedicated secure domain.

To keep up to date with the UK mortgage, property and finance market syndicate our news at http://www.mortgage-loan-uk.net/news/news.xml

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