The figure for September was also slightly higher than September 2018, and stood just above the six month average of £21.8bn as growth has remained relatively flat.
Mortgage approvals for house purchase were also broadly unchanged in September, at 66,000, and remained within the narrow range seen over the past three years, the Bank of England’s Money and Credit statistics for September showed.
Mortgage approvals for remortgage increased slightly to 49,000 from August’s 48,000.
Duty to maintain confidence
Vikki Jefferies, proposition director at Primis, said the stable mortgage activity suggested that attractive deals from lenders and support from advisers had provided clients with consumer confidence.
However, she added that this needed to be sustained.
She said: “Over the next few months, advisers have both a duty and an opportunity to help maintain this buyer confidence.
“By checking in with clients regularly and ensuring they’re on the best product for their needs, brokers will reassure customers that they are in good hands, no matter what next year may have in store.”
Future-proof remortgages
With remortgages seeing a modest uptick, some suggested the ongoing political uncertainty was encouraging borrowers to secure the best deals.
Sam Harhat, head of financial services at Andrews Property Group, said: “People are locking into low rates as a hedge against future volatility.”
Andrew Montlake, managing director of Coreco, echoed this as he added: “Remortgages, as ever, are surging as people batten down the hatches to ride out the potential storm ahead.”
