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The figure reported by lenders stood at 36,171 last month, a modest rise on the 34,809 seen in November, but still low by historical standards.

 Mortgage approvals for house purchases have hovered around 30,000 to 35,000 since early 2009, apart from a dip to around 29,000 in November 2010 to February 2011. Net mortgage lending was £734m, against the previous month's £465m.

The BBA said that with annual growth of 1.5pc, net mortgage lending is outstripping the 0.6pc growth seen across the whole lending market. The number of loans approved for remortgaging fell to 21,164 from 21,788 in November, while other secured lending loans rose from 15,738 to 16,047.