British house owners borrow record £12bn in third quarter

BRITISH homeowners borrowed a record £11.97bn against the inflated value of their homes in the third quarter of 2002, the Bank of England disclosed.

Mortgage equity withdrawal (MEW) was up from £10.12bn in the second quarter and £6.8bn in the third quarter of last year. MEW has been rising steadily for two years in line with booming house prices.

With borrowing costs in Britain remaining at a 39-year low and unemployment at record lows, economists said mortgage equity withdrawal was likely to remain high in the fourth quarter of last year.