Mortgage Approvals Are Up Despite Cautious Market 

The autumn budget is fast approaching, and rumours abound as we wait to find out what the Chancellor’s 26 November announcement will hold – and how it could impact the property market. It’s to be expected that buyers might be cautious amid the uncertainty. However, things are not quite clearcut, with the Bank of England’s Money and Credit report suggesting that mortgage borrowing has been going strong.  

Rachel Reeves has spoken of increasing revenue in the upcoming budget. Details are yet to be confirmed, but it’s been speculated that she might implement an alternative approach to stamp duty or introduce a home ownership tax to achieve this goal. Beyond measures that directly relate to the property market, any other impact on household budgets could filter through into buyers’ and homeowners’ decision-making processes. 

With this in mind, there have been reports of the market slowing down ahead of the budget, particularly where high value properties are concerned. But it seems that lower interest rates and the slowdown in price growth are continuing to improve affordability, and a new report suggests that buyers are still active. Recently released Bank of England data indicates that in fact, mortgage approvals have increased in recent months. 

According to the Band of England’s Money and Credit report, UK lenders approved 65,944 mortgages in September 2025. That’s the highest number of mortgage approvals seen in a single month since the start of the year. Meanwhile, net mortgage borrowing reached £5.5 billion, the year’s highest since its £13.2 billion peak in March – a figure that was linked to the rush to beat SDLT threshold changes on 1 April 2025. Looking longer-term, net mortgage lending has risen to a 3.2% increase. 

One important point to note is that this is just a snapshot. There’s a chance that the budget’s contents will nudge buyers or sellers to adjust their plans in the months ahead. But for now, the Bank of England data offers a more rounded picture of what’s happening in the property market as we move further into autumn 2025. 

Read more on Reuters and Yahoo Finance UK.