Net mortgage approvals fell for the third month running in March, to a total 64,300, new Bank of England (BoE) figures have shown.

The figure, which is approvals net of cancellations for house purchases, was 800 down on February’s total.

According to the latest BoE Money and Credit report, net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals increased sharply by £9.7bn to £13bn in March, following a £1bn fall in net borrowing to £3.3bn in February.

The central bank’s figures showed that approvals for remortgages, which only capture remortgaging with a different lender, increased in March, by 1,000 to 33,400. This followed a decrease of 700 in February.

Gross lending increased significantly to £39.9bn during the month, from £24.9bn in February, which the BoE noted was the highest since June 2021 (£42.4bn).

Chartered financial planner at Quilter Cheviot, Rosie Hooper, said that the statistics show that the changes to stamp duty, which came into effect at the start of April, resulted in a “surge” in mortgage borrowing as buyers pushed to get property purchases across the line.

“Given March was the final month of the lower stamp duty rates, it comes as little surprise that net borrowing of mortgage debt climbed dramatically by £9.7 billion to £13.0 billion in March,” Hooper said.

“While the stamp duty changes certainly spurred on prospective first-time buyers and home movers, net mortgage approvals for house purchases, which is indicative of future borrowing, fell for the third consecutive month.

“This figure dropped by 800 to 64,300 in March and given those looking to purchase a new home will have to contend with a significantly higher tax bill going forward, we can expect this decline to continue at pace for some time yet.”

Propertymark CEO, Nathan Emerson, added: “As the global economy continues to react to different events, many people are acutely aware there could be challenges ahead regarding overall affordability when approaching the buying and selling process. We are starting to see more competitive mortgage deals from certain key lenders, but the eligibility criteria in some cases remains tight.

“It remains vital inflation stays on a pathway that keeps it as close to the BoE’s initial target of 2% as possible. Although there are hints that we may witness various base rate cuts as the year progresses from international bodies, it remains prevalent to consider such cuts will only happen when conditions permit.”

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