UK lenders gave the green light to the most mortgages in 17 months, an indication of growing momentum in the property market despite a small dip in prices last month.
Bank of England data showed banks and building societies approved 60,383 loans for house purchase in February, up from 56,087 the previous month. That contrasted with an unexpected 0.2% drop in house prices in March after two consecutive increases in data collected by the lender Nationwide Building Society.