There were also a much larger number of cyclists out for their early morning leg stretch.
It seems that the sunshine has given people, in my locality at least, more energy which in turn tends to breed increased confidence.
Confidence generally leads to a more optimistic outlook on life, a willingness to try new or rediscover past experiences and challenge yourself to leave your comfort zone.
There seems to be a similar sense of cautious optimism creeping, albeit at a slow rate, back into the mortgage market.
As the BSA reported last week, both gross mortgage lending and mortgage approvals by mutuals were 20% higher in the first half of 2011, than the same period the previous year.
The Bank of England’s Credit Conditions Survey also observed that lenders are reporting that mortgage availability to borrowers with higher LTVs has somewhat increased, while there is increased demand for mortgages for house purchase in the last quarter.
In addition, demand for buy to let lending has also risen substantially.
This all demonstrates to me that, despite the regulatory uncertainty still hanging over the industry, the crisis in the eurozone and a funding environment that remains subdued, the mortgage industry is making a genuine effort to increase lending to individuals (who can afford it) in line with the government’s aspirations.
While the economic outlook remains challenging and mortgage lending is expected to remain fairly flat in the coming months, these increases do give some cause for cheer.
Mutual lenders are again appearing frequently in the best buy tables for mortgages. They continue to service a customer base with increasingly diverse needs and we are beginning to see some competition returning to the market.
There is no denying that challenging times still lie ahead, but if we look beyond the doom and gloom that has enveloped the mortgage market in recent times, there are some successes to be discovered.
The fact that lending and competition are increasing, combined with more products available to borrowers with smaller deposits, should give us reason to be cheerful.
Paul Broadhead is head of mortgage policy at the Building Societies Association
