Home owners borrowed 13% less in month after Brexit vote

Home-owners borrowed £10.6bn in July - 13% less than they did in June, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

The total number of loans fell by 14% to 58,100, in the first full month since the UK voted to leave the European Union.

But the CML said it was still too early to assess the impact of the Brexit vote on the housing market.

The fall amongst first-time buyers was particularly pronounced.

They borrowed £4.4bn, a drop of 19% on the figure for June. However, lending in that month was exceptionally high.

"It is hard to determine whether these figures reflect a first uncertain reaction to the referendum vote, or are a sign of a market which was already cooling," said Paul Smee, the director general of the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

"It will be quite some time before a full assessment can be made."

Earlier this week figures showed that house price inflation dropped sharply in July.

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) suggested house prices rose by 8.3% in July, compared to 9.7% in June.