LONDON (AFX) - New approvals for house purchases in July rose to 2.116 bln stg in seasonally adjusted terms, compared with a downwardly revised 2.012 bln stg rise the previous month, according to the Building Societies Association.
On an unadjusted basis, new approvals fell to 2.257 bln stg in July against 2.305 bln in June.
Building societies' gross advances totalled an adjusted 1.940 bln stg, down from a revised 2.054 bln in June, while the unadjusted figure was down to 2.124 bln from 2.278 bln the previous month. Gross advances are the total value of mortgages advanced in the period, while net advances are after repayments of principal. In the savings market, building societies saw a seasonally-adjusted net retail inflow of 424 mln stg in July, down from a revised inflow of 578 mln stg a month ago.
Commenting on the data, BSA's director general Adrian Coles said: "July's gross receipts are up marginally on June's figures, although larger withdrawals have meant that net receipts are down slightly on last month's, possibly due to people's spending habits increasing in times of good weather."
He pointed out that in seasonally adjusted terms, July's figures for mortgage approvals were up 5 pct from last month. "However, the actual figures for gross advances have dropped, but this may be an indication of a new caution among housebuyers who are wary after reading media reports of a possible recession," he added.