mortgage lending set another new record during October as the buoyant market showed no sign of slowing down, figures showed yesterday.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said a total of £27.5 billion was advanced during the month, eight per cent higher than the previous high set in September and nearly a third more than was lent in October 2002.

Lending for buying a house accounted for 47 per cent of the total and was also a new record at £12.9 billion, while remortgaging remained strong at £12 billion or 44 per cent of all advances.

CML director general Michael Coogan said: "Lending continues to confound expectations.

"We expect the recent resurgence in the housing market to result in high lending levels in November too, as people try to complete their moves before Christmas."

Within the figures the number of people buying their first home remained low, with just 27 per cent of all loans being taken out by first-time buyers, compared with 39 per cent in October last year.

At the same time the proportion of people taking out fixed rate mortgages fell to 34 per cent from 43 per cent in September, which the group attributed to a rise in the interest rates offered on fixed rate loans.

The figures were supported by ones from the British Bankers' Association which also showed mortgage lending by the major banks reached a new high during October.

Friday November 21, 2003