Figures collated by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reveal that the number of remortgage loans rose 7.1% to 25,600 and the value increased by 9.7% on the previous month, However, house purchase lending remained little changed and lending to first-time buyers fell by 1% on March.

The CML figures correspond with Bank of England data published earlier this week, which found remortgage and buy-to-let lending bucked the trend of a quarter one dip in gross mortgage lending.

Some commentators expect lending to become more buoyant in May.

SPF Private Clients chief executive Mark Harris said growth in the housing market was steady rather than spectacular:

“Remortgaging gained some ground in April but one would still expect to see more of this, given the rock-bottom mortgage rates now available.

“It may be that borrowers are sat on attractive reversion rates or standard variable rates so don’t wish to remortgage, or are trapped because of tighter criteria or lack of equity in their homes so can’t switch. There may also be borrowers holding out for even better rates.

“However, borrowers should look at rates in an historical context – these are the cheapest rates ever seen and even if they do edge a little lower, snapping one up now might be a good move. Don’t assume they will be around for ever.”

Despite slow lending in April, this year has seen the proportion of lending to first-time buyers increase to 46% – higher than the average 38% seen since 2007. The average first-time buyer loan-to-value increased slightly to 81%. The amount borrowed also crept up, to 3.25 times their income, while mortgage repayments represented slightly less of their income at 19.1%.

CML director-general Paul Smee said: “Lending to first-time buyers remains above the levels seen at the same time last year, despite the boost caused by the end of the stamp duty holiday in March last year.

“The Help to Buy scheme announced in this year’s Budget should provide a further boost to the first-time buyer and home mover markets, but we still await further details on how the initiatives will work.”

Paul Hunt, managing director of Phoebus Software added:

“There has been a significant improvement in the lending environment as a whole. Lenders are more willing to lend to high LTV borrowers, which is starting to clear the bottleneck in the housing market and boost house sales all the way up the property chain. There has been a real commitment from lenders to support first time buyers, by offering an attractive range of mortgage deals, thanks in no small measure to the Funding for Lending Scheme. Lenders have been central in supporting this demand from the bottom tier of the market.

“All eyes will be on the much-maligned Help to Buy scheme over coming months – it may yet inflate house prices and could be hijacked by buy-to-let investors and foreign buyers, rather than the first-time buyers that it is designed to help.”