According to the British Bankers Association, mortgage approvals increased to a 15 month high in June. This represents an increase of 65% on the same month in 2008 and raises hopes that the worst of the ‘credit crunch’ is now behind us.
The banks have shown that they now have an increased ability to lend, and this looks likely to be the start of a recovery within the mortgage sector which is hoped will result in increased activity in the property market. Although it is still too early to tell for sure whether the property market has bottomed out, there are some very encouraging signs.
Within minutes of this news hitting the news wires the Office for National Statistics announced that retail sales had also increased sharply for the month of June. The 1.2% rise was far greater than the 0.3% that had been predicted by many economists.
With confidence beginning to re-appear in the markets and positive economic news becoming more frequent, could it be that the end of the recession is in sight?
Well the International Monetary Fund has revised its growth forecasts upwards with global economic growth expected to return in 2010. So we might very well be through the worst of the storm, which would indeed be excellent news, but remember an economic downturn is a great time to invest in property, so get out there and grab a bargain for the window of opportunity may soon begin to close.
