Britons increased their mortgage borrowing in April at the fastest pace since October 2022 in what appears to have been a rush by potential homebuyers to lock in lower interest rates.
The Bank of England said that individuals had borrowed a net £2.4 billion in mortgages in April, up sharply from £500 million in the previous month. It took the growth in annual net borrowing into positive territory for the first time in nearly two years and far exceeded City analysts’ expectations of borrowing of £450 million.
The figures suggested that “the drag on mortgage lending from higher interest rates is fading”, according to Ashley Webb, UK economist at Capital Economics, who added that prospective buyers may have pushed ahead with purchases for fear of