- Mortgage approvals for home purchases in the UK plummeted to a two-year low in January 2026, with just 59,999 approvals, according to the Bank of England.
- Approvals for remortgaging with a different lender also saw a slight decline in January, dropping to approximately 38,100.
- Despite the fall in mortgage approvals, Nationwide Building Society reported a 0.3 per cent month-on-month rise in average UK house prices in February, reaching £273,176.
- Experts suggest that while house prices are still falling on an inflation-adjusted basis, contributing to gradual affordability improvements, many prospective buyers remain cautious.
- The Bank of England also reported that the annual growth rate for consumer credit remained unchanged at 8.3 per cent in January, with households' deposits increasing by £4.2 billion.
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