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latest figures from the British Bankers Association have today revealed that net mortgage lending has hit an eight-year low during April falling to £2.7bn from a previous six-month average of £3.4bn. Gross mortgage lending was also down to £7.9bn from £8.7bn the previous month.

The amount of mortgages approved for house purchase rose slightly to 27,685, compared with 26,671 in March and 23,812 in November.

Remortgage approvals dipped from 26,595 in March to 25,418, the lowest for a decade.

Personal deposits went from £700m in March to £1.8bn, making it the third month in a row where the value of deposits has risen.

David Dooks, statistics director at the BBA, says: “The house purchase part of the mortgage market appears to have stabilised, with slightly more approvals coming through.”

He adds: “April’s weak net mortgage lending reflects the lower number of approvals in previous months.”