Lenders say the availability of secured credit to households was unchanged in the three months to the end of February, but expect credit to fall over the coming months, data from the Bank of England shows.  

Banks predict that credit “availability will decrease” for household borrowers over the next three months to the end of May, according to the central bank’s first quarter Credit Conditions Survey.  

It adds that demand for secured lending for house purchases fell in the first quarter, but is expected to lift over the coming three months.  

Banks say demand for secured lending for remortgaging was lower in the three months to February, but is “expected to increase” over the coming quarter.  

The survey adds that lenders report that default rates on secured loans to households rose in the first quarter, and were expected to increase further over the next three months.   

Lenders also say that overall spreads on secured lending to households — relative to Bank rate, or the appropriate swap rate – narrowed in the first quarter, and are “expected to narrow further” in the second quarter.  

The BoE’s Credit Conditions Survey of banks and building societies is carried out every quarter, as part of the central bank’s mission to maintain financial stability.