The number of mortgages being approved fell in August, figures show, in the latest sign that the housing market has cooled since the Brexit vote. The Bank of England said mortgage approvals, seen by economists as one of the early indicators of housing market activity, had dropped to the lowest level since November 2014. Consumer credit rose by £1.57bn in August, beating economists’ expectations of a £1.4bn increase. Scott Bowman from consultancy Capital Economics said: “August’s UK money and credit figures suggest that the housing market continues to cool, but appetite for debt hasn’t taken much of a hit.”However, he pointed to other indicators, which suggest that confidence is returning to the housing market after an initial post-Brexit vote wobble. “We suspect that the fundamentals for consumers will become less favourable over the coming months, with purchasing power likely diminishing and the labour market softening,” Archer said.

Source: The Guardian September 29, 2016 11:09 UTC