Figures reveal October rise in mortgage lending

Mortgage lending rose in October, according to new figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

The CML revealed today that the total lent in October was £18.7 billion, up by nearly seven per cent on September's total of £17.5 billion.

Such a recovery may hint at the start of a wider improvement in the market.

However, the CML emphasised that this figure was still much lower than last year's levels of borrowing and called on the government to do more to increase mortgage finance.

Director general Michael Coogan said the government should publish the findings of the Crosby Report on the mortgage finance issue alongside its pre-Budget statement next week.

It should then announce "concrete steps that will enable and encourage firms to increase mortgage loans", he added.

Mortgages may become cheaper as a consequence of another possible interest rate cut in the near future.

The prospects of this appeared to rise when minutes of the November meeting of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee revealed that the body considered a two per cent reduction, with some deciding not to push for this on the basis that they wanted to keep this option in reserve for the coming months.