UK Mortgage Approvals Experience a Slight Decline

In January, the United Kingdom witnessed a minor decrease in mortgage approvals for house purchases, dropping to 66,200 from 66,500 in December 2024, as reported by the Bank of England.

Remortgaging on the Rise

Contrastingly, remortgaging approvals saw an uptick, increasing to 32,900 in January from 30,700 the previous month.

Consumer Credit Growth Slows Down

Consumer credit reached £1.7 billion in January, up from £1.1 billion in December 2024. However, the annual growth rate for all consumer credit slightly decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 6.4%.

Changes in Personal Loans and Mortgage Debt

The effective rate on new personal loans to individuals saw a decline of 6 basis points to 8.79%. Meanwhile, individuals borrowed £4.2 billion in mortgage debt, indicating a continued interest in the housing market despite the slight dip in approvals.