"These figures are interesting because they reflect what we were seeing in the market in the spring and summer; in other words, a more cautious approach from buyers"
Approvals fell from 68,452 in July to 66,580 in August, but remain above the 61,600 recorded in August 2016.
Remortgaging approvals also fell on a monthly basis, from 46,033 in July to 44,825.
Mark Harris, chief executive of mortgage broker SPF Private Clients, said: "Lending held up in August, down slightly on the previous month but to an extent this reflects the quieter summer period. Lenders remain keen to lend and offer competitively-priced products, with several two-year fixes still available around 2 per cent. However, really cheap deals are not around for long, with Accord pulling its sub-1 per cent mortgage after a few days due to being inundated with demand.
"Swap rates have risen in the past couple of weeks on the back of suggestions from the Bank of England that interest rates could start edging upwards, which may reflect mortgage pricing going forward but at the moment lenders are keen to attract business."
Jeremy Leaf, north London estate agent and former RICS residential chairman, added: "These figures are interesting because they reflect what we were seeing in the market in the spring and summer; in other words, a more cautious approach from buyers nervous about the impact of Brexit and an uncertain economy.
"However, the figures also show that buyers were getting on with their business at the time and don’t reveal any signs of collapse in activity, which had been forecasted in some quarters and is not what we are seeing on the high street."
