The Bank of England has reported that households borrowed an additional £4.3 billion secured on their homes in October, following borrowing of £4.9 billion in September.

This follows high levels of mortgage approvals for house purchase seen over recent months.

Mortgage borrowing troughed at £0.2 billion in April, but has since recovered and is slightly higher than the average of £3.9 billion in the six months to February 2020.

The number of mortgage approvals for house purchase continued increasing in October, to 97,500 from 92,100 in September. This was the highest number of approvals since September 2007, 33% higher than approvals in February 2020 and around 10 times higher than the trough of 9,400 approvals in May.

Approvals for remortgage were broadly unchanged in October, at 32,900, and remain around 40% lower than in February 2020.

Vikki Jefferies, proposition director at PRIMIS Mortgage Network, said: “The mortgage industry continued to show positive signs of recovery in October, with today’s figures showing that approvals increased further last month. Incentives such as the Chancellor’s stamp duty holiday have gone a long way towards driving buyer appetite, while the pent-up demand that succeeded the housing market’s hiatus has further contributed to the industry’s recovery.

“However, while the market continues to work hard to ensure that borrowers can progress with their applications, it’s crucial for advisers to keep protection front of mind during their conversations with clients. Many customers continue to face financial hardship as a result of the pandemic and are, understandably, looking for solutions which can protect them and their families from further difficulty.

“It is in an adviser’s best interest to ensure that their clients’ finances are adequately protected so that families are properly supported, both during this period and beyond.”