Mortgage lending 'shows signs of slowing'
Published On 23 June 2007
Mortgage lending remained strong in May, but the first signs that it could be easing also emerged, a report suggests.Figures published by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) show that gross mortgage lending reached a May record of £30.6 billion during the month.
However, while this figure was up 12 per cent on April's lending total and five per cent more than in May 2006, the CML pointed out that the year-on-year growth rate was not as high as it had been in the previous four months.
"While today's lending figure is a new record for the month of May, it does indicate that the market is slowing down following the rapid and sustained growth we saw last year," explained CML director general Michael Coogan.
"Going forward we expect lending to ease as we progress through the year, but the market will remain in good shape.
"Although further interest rate rises will continue to dampen demand, we are still on course to meet our prediction of a record £360 billion of lending during 2007."
Oliver Gilmartin, senior economist for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, added: "Although lending has edged up on the previous month, the early summer always sees an increase in transaction activity, meaning we should not read too much into the monthly change."
