Net mortgage borrowing rose 19% to £6.2 billion in March from £5.2 billion in February, according to the latest money and credit statistics from the Bank of England.
The Bank said this is above the previous six-month average of £4.9 billion.
The annual growth rate for net mortgage lending decreased to 3% in March, from 3.4% in February.
Secured gross lending increased to £28.7 billion in March, up from £24 billion in February, above the six-month average of £23.9 billion.
Repayments increased in March, to £19.7 billion, from £18.6 billion in February, slightly below the six-month average of £19.8 billion.
The difference between gross lending minus repayments and net lending figures is due to different seasonal adjustment methods applied across these series by the Bank.
Net mortgage approvals (that is, approvals net of cancellations) for house purchases, which is an indicator of future borrowing, increased to 63,500 in March, from 62,700 in February, above an average of around 63,200 over the previous six months.
Approvals for remortgaging (which only capture remortgaging with a different lender) also increased, to 51,300 in March from 41,200 in February.
The ‘effective’ interest rate – the actual interest paid – on newly drawn mortgages decreased, to 4.03% in March, from 4.10% in February. The rate on the outstanding stock of mortgages was 3.93% in March, down from 3.95% in February.
Mark Harris, chief executive of mortgage broker SPF Private Clients, says: “Mortgage approvals picked up in March, demonstrating an underlying resilience to the housing market which started to make itself apparent once the Budget was in the rear-view mirror and continued as rates started to rise as a result of the Middle East conflict.
“The effective interest rate paid on new mortgages decreased to 4.03% and the rate on the outstanding stock of mortgages also fell to 3.93%. Affordability concerns remain but in recent days we have seen lenders trim their mortgage rates, which will be welcomed by borrowers.
“Remortgaging numbers jumped significantly, suggesting that borrowers coming off low rates are shopping around for the best deal possible rather than opting for the ease of sticking with their existing lender.”
