The Bank's figures showed that lenders approved 57,667 mortgages for house purchases in June, which although below the 58,071 recorded in May was still up on the average of 54,798 over the previous six months.
Borrowers paid off £13.7bn of mortgage debt, meaning net lending added up to £700m.
Danny Waters, CEO, Enterprise Finance, said:
"The mortgage bull run continues apace. Lending is still at low levels historically but there is considerably more oomph in the market than a year ago and a greater willingness among consumers to borrow. Consumers have become more confident at the same time that mortgages, due to the Funding for Lending Scheme, have become more available — and at better prices, too.
"Last week's second quarter GDP number will only add to people's belief that the worst is behind us, and therefore their confidence. Just as people have become more confident about taking on mortgages, so they have become more comfortable about credit card and other debt. This is typical of any recovery but there is something different this time round. What we are seeing is that people are much more calculated about taking on debt.
"Their approach to plastic and relationship with loans has changed considerably relative to the years running up to 2008. People are borrowing more but they are borrowing responsibly and that bodes well for the long term."
Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, comments:
“House purchase loans remained upbeat in June; up by nearly 3,000 compared to the previous six month average. While there was a minor reduction in the total number of loans since May 2013, total value was up to £14 billion, maintaining steady optimism for further market recovery.
“Buyer attention has been captured by fixed rate deals that have kept on falling, while product numbers were back up to nearly 10,000 in June. The government’s Help to Buy initiative has also stirred interest, with a number of high street lenders putting forward competitive products specifically for the scheme.
“Although the market is showing signs of progress, the number of mortgage approvals is still less than half of its peak ten years ago. While its improvement is promising, there is still much to be done before we can be assured of the sectors’ return to glory.”
