Paul Stockwell, Chief Commercial Officer at Gatehouse Bank, comments on the Bank of England's Money and Credit data for January 2021
“The pipeline of property purchases in the UK housing market remains strong, with mortgage approvals in January still well above pre-pandemic levels.
“It suggests buyers have not been deterred by the March stamp duty deadline as approvals dipped by only 3,800 compared to December, and lending was more than 20% higher than the pre-pandemic six-month average.
“If the stamp duty discount is extended in the Budget this week, it will likely provide a fresh boost to purchase demand, and we could quickly see another surge of interest from buyers.”