Homeowner house purchase lending totaled £10.7bn in November, down 9% on October but up 18% on November 2014, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

First-time buyers borrowed £4.2bn for house purchase, down 9% on October but up 14% on November last year. This totaled 27,900 loans, down 8% month-on-month but up 10% year-on-year. 

Home movers took out 32,300 loans, down 10% month-on-month and up 9% compared to November 2014. In total, this was £6.5bn borrowed, down 10% on October but up 20% year-on-year. 

Home-owner remortgage activity was down 9% by volume and 14% by value compared to October. However, compared to November 2014 remortgage lending was up 24% by volume and up 36% by value. 

Buy-to-let saw month-on-month decreases, down 6% by volume and 8% by value, but the substantial growth year-on-year continued, up 35% and 46% respectively.    

Paul Smee, director general of the CML, commented: “As expected, mortgage lending activity eased back as the normal dip in the winter months began. There was still growth across all lending types in November compared to the year earlier suggesting continued improvement. Our forecasts anticipate that gross lending will continue a slow but steady upward trajectory over the next two years.”