Mortgage approvals for home buyers have declined as upcoming stamp duty changes approach.

The Bank's Money and Credit report shows that February home purchase mortgage approvals reached 65,500 which represented a 600 decrease from January and became the lowest figure since August 2024.

The "nil rate" bands in England and Northern Ireland will reduce stamp duty costs starting on Tuesday for some property buyers.

Lucian Cook from Savills residential research department stated that February's minor approval decrease indicates the housing market experienced an early slowdown because of poor economic performance and inconsistent interest rate adjustments.

The personal finance analyst at Bestinvest by Evelyn Partners Alice Haine observed that homebuyers who begin their purchase process currently will miss the opportunity for reduced stamp duty rates which expire today. The rush of demand has caused conveyancing delays which might prevent accepted buyers from completing their deals in time thus resulting in potential losses.

The recent Bank of England rate cuts provide some relief to the market according to Jason Tebb who serves as president of OnTheMarket but mortgage rates continue to exceed typical levels from recent times. The market needs a boost according to him because the stamp duty break ends today.