Approvals for remortgaging (32,116) fell in March and were slightly lower than the previous six-month average (32,390), while approvals for other purposes fell slightly in March to 20,099 and were lower than the previous six-month average of 21,665.

Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “It’s curious that remortgages fell during March, as it was that month when expectation of interest rate rises reached fever pitch on the back of soaring inflation.

“Logic would suggest remortgages will fall further in April given the news that inflation dropped back, but then logic and the property market rarely go hand in hand.

“Regarding house purchases, our own figures are consistent with those of the Bank of England, showing an uptick in March on February. Transactions are still very low by historical standards but at least we are moving in the right direction.

“Saying that, April is likely to see a drop-off in mortgage approvals on March, as the second half of the month was a write-off given the number of bank holidays. At best, the market in April was subdued.”

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He added: “We will need to see the May approvals figures before we get a more realistic idea of how the mortgage market is faring.”