It was the lowest number of approvals for house purchase since May last year.
e.surv said the drop was due to an inflated two year high of 58,728 approvals in January triggered by a glut of new buyers trying to complete before the end of the stamp duty concession period.
The number of first-time buyers fell to their lowest level since July last year. The surveyors said it expected the first-time buyer market to enter a trough following artificially strong months in December and January.
Loans for purchases under £250,000, the threshold for stamp duty exemption, fell by almost 10,000 from 43,459 in January to 33,944 in February.
The average loan to value fell for the third consecutive month to 61%.
There were only 5,533 loans to borrowers with deposits of under 15%, its lowest level since July 2011.
Year-on-year growth for mortgage approvals declined steeply from 29.6% in January to 1.6% in February.
Richard Sexton, director of e.surv, said: “The stampede of first-time buyers rushing to beat the stamp duty deadline bloated the January figures out of all recognition.
“They created an artificial spike in approvals, which shouldn’t be misconstrued as a sign the market is resuscitating in the long-term.
“At first glance the drop in approvals during February looks alarming, but it is a return to normality after an abnormally frantic winter.”
Sexton added that harder times for the market lurked.
He said: “Borrowers may find lenders notifying them of higher rates to cover their increased funding costs, as we have already seen with Halifax’s Standard Variable Rate mortgages and with RBS on two of their product lines.
“Weak funding conditions mean lenders won’t be in a position to increase net lending beyond around £6bn this year which is still painfully low compared the mid-2000s. Plenty of would-be buyers will be left out in the cold.
“The first-time buyer market looks set to enter a trough as it rebalances itself in the aftermath of the swollen activity of the last few months. Lending conditions aren’t any easier for new buyers and they still have to cross a high threshold to secure a mortgage at an affordable rate.”
