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Banks ease up on mortgage lending The Metro July 09

The number of mortgages approved for house purchases hits its highest level since March 2008 last month in a further sign that banks are becoming more willing to lend, new figures show.

The latest lending statistics from the British Bankers' Association (BBA) showed 35,235 mortgages were approved during June, up 61 per cent on a year earlier.

Net mortgage lending, which strips out redemptions and repayments, rose 5.1 per cent year-on-year to "2.6billion in June, to take the total for the first six months of 2009 to £18.1billion, said the BBA.

The news follows statistics published earlier this week by the Council of Mortgage Lenders showing a 17 per cent rise in mortgage lending.

The BBA data shows gross mortgage lending rose by £100 millions to £7.9billion between May and June - the first rise since April 2008.

But the figures also reveal how far the market has plunged since last year's financial crisis. Gross lending remains 46 per cent down on a year earlier, while net lending is still nearly half the long-term monthly average.

The BBA added lending was not recovering as quickly outside the mortgage market.