BBA: Remortgaging increases in June

In June remortgage approvals were 20% higher year-on-year and mortgage approvals were 8% higher.

Richard Woolhouse, chief economist at the BBA, said: “The housing market is beginning to hot up again, with a pick-up in the number of mortgage approvals for the last month.

“Interestingly, we’ve also seen an increase in the number of people remortgaging, which could be down to savvy borrowers taking advantage of competitive deals on fixed-rate mortgages ahead of a possible rise in interest rates.

“Lending to some business sectors continues to show good results, although in the case of real estate, banks are being cautious as they try to refinance bad loans.”

Lending to the alternative capital market grew by £8.9bn in the first half of 2015, a figure the BBA called 'subdued'.