In the latest data release from the Bank of England, there was an increase in the number of mortgage approvals in October. There were 67,518 in comparison to the 63,594 in September. The continued interest in securing a mortgage or remortgage is being tied to the historically low interest rates being offered by lenders.

The sixth month average to October for mortgage approvals was 63,914, which again shows the strengthened interest from borrowers at the start of the final quarter of the year.

The total value of mortgage approvals for October was £12 billion which is up from the previous month level of £11.2 billion.

Home buyers were not the only group looking to secure a low interest rate. Homeowners were also interested in taking advantage of the lending opportunities with 43,513 remortgages in October. This is an increase over the 42,606 recorded in September. Total value of remortgaging amounted to £7.6 billion, which again is an increase over the £7.4 billion remortgage value in September.

In August, the Bank of England cut the standard base interest rate for the first time since March 2009. The current rate of 0.25% is at an all-time historic low and that is pushing borrowers to take notice. Both hopeful home buyers as well as homeowners are looking to save with a low interest deal.

This trend is expected to continue into the beginning of the year as there are those that believe factors outside of the UK economy, namely those impacting the global market, could push lenders’ interest rates upward in the months ahead. If so, the cheapest mortgage and remortgage deals will disappear, likely forever, but the deals remaining will still be quite attractive in terms of what is deemed a normal interest rate.