The Bank of England has reported that the number of loan approvals for house purchase was 76,947 in January, compared to the average of 67,461 over the previous six months.

The number of approvals for remortgaging was 36,398, compared to the average monthly increase of 35,248 over the previous six months.

The number of approvals for other purposes was 13,050, broadly in line with the average monthly increase over the previous six months.

Aldermore Residential Mortgages’ managing director Charles Haresnape said: “This high demand is to be welcomed overall and is fuelling the current housing market with gross lending up 36% this January compared to the same month in 2013, according to BoE figures.

“However, a note of caution here; this demand must be balanced against supply, or there is a danger of the housing market overheating. There are growing anecdotal reports of a shortage of prospective sellers. We need more houses to come onto the market to balance any risks of a demand-driven housing bubble as new builds are not likely to be able to keep up with the level of demand.

“Supply has to come from a combination of both new builds and existing properties by encouraging more sellers into the market. The likelihood is that more sellers will come into the market over the coming months due to the renewed confidence in the market, which should help drive down the dangers of house prices over-inflating.”

Nigel Stockton, financial services director at Countrywide, added: “Resale supply remains the most challenging issue with listings the crucial activity for estate agencies across the country. Estate agencies are showing graphs which show the decline in available stock against enquiries.

“That said, there is now positive house price growth across the country so they do expect transactions to rise again this year. The government’s Help to Buy initiative has led to consumer confidence increasing and is working in the right regions to bolster the market.”