"The decline in house purchase and remortgaging approvals over the last six months clearly illustrates the recent slowdown in the UK property market."
House purchase approval numbers totalled 40,750, slightly down on the monthly average of 41,959 over the previous six months.
Remortgaging approval numbers of 23,074 were 10% lower than in April 2016 and down on the monthly average of 26,569 over the previous six months.
Gross mortgage borrowing in April totalled £13.4bn which is "much in line with recent months", according to the data.
Gross borrowing in April was 10% higher than a year before, however the figures are distorted by the April 1st deadline for the increase in stamp duty on second homes.
Net mortgage borrowing in April was 2.4% higher than a year ago.
Eric Leenders, BBA Managing Director for Retail Banking, said: “House purchase approvals were largely in line with last year’s average, though remortgaging approvals have dipped slightly in recent months despite historically low interest rates."
Andy Knee, chief executive of LMS, commented: “The decline in house purchase and remortgaging approvals over the last six months clearly illustrates the recent slowdown in the UK property market. LMS research also shows that remortgage lending ground to a halt recently, with the total amount of lending levelling off at £5.2 billion between February and March.
“In April, the General Election announcement meant first-time buyers and existing homeowners delayed decisions on whether to purchase a new home. They would rather wait and see who enters Downing Street on June 8th before purchasing again. It remains to be seen whether the property market will pick up later in the year.”
