Net borrowing for mortgages dropped slightly in December, shows new data from the Bank of England (BoE).

At the end of last year, net borrowing came to £3.6bn, which compares to £3.8bn in November.

The BoE points out that this is below the pre-pandemic average of £4.2bn in the 12 months to February 2020.

Gross lending fell too, from £22.4bn in November to £21.7bn in December.

Approvals for house purchase climbed, however – going from 66,700 in November to 71,000 in December. In terms of value, over the same time frame this went from £15bn to £16bn.

Meanwhile, remortgage approvals ticked up only slightly, from 44,600 in November to 44,900 a month later. And the value of these remortgages dropped from £9.3bn to £9bn.

Just Mortgages national operations director John Phillips says: “Although net mortgage borrowing was down slightly on November’s figures, the year ended on a positive note. This optimism is based on approvals in December, which confirm that interest in purchasing property is here to stay.”

He adds: “Now we have a full picture of last year, we can see the shape of the market.

It was a year of turbulence, with spikes in activity, but the main takeaway is that 2021 was the year of the broker.

“With stamp duty deadlines and criteria changes aplenty, brokers did an exceptional job supporting clients to find the right mortgage.

And Bluestone Mortgages chief executive Steve Seal says: “Today’s figures are hardly surprising given the current inflationary environment.

“Affordability concerns will continue to be at the forefront of consumers’ minds given soaring energy bills, rising inflation and the upcoming increase to National Insurance contributions.”