2
Jan
Building society mortgage lending rises
New figures have shown that the amount of money lent in mortgages
by building societies rose between October and November 2008.
The Building Societies Association (BSA) revealed that its members
lent £422 million in November, a rise of nine million on
October.
Although such totals are well down on the £790 million lent in
November 2007, BSA director general Adrian Coles suggested these
may represent a sign that the market is stabilising.
He stated: "It is encouraging to note that after the negative net
advances figures in the summer, the last three months have seen
positive figures which suggests perhaps that the market is not
deteriorating even further."
Buyers may be keener to take out mortgages due to recent falls in
house prices and interest rates.
Last week Halifax said a major indicator of affordability - the
ratio between prices and income - was more favourable in November
2008 than it has been for more than five years.
