The number of mortgages that the UK's biggest banks agreed with home buyers "fell sharply" in January, the fall being the lowest since May, the British Bankers' Association (BBA) has said.

The seasonally adjusted mortgage approval numbers stood at 35,083 in January, down from 45,650 in December. Remortgage approvals fell from 23,609 to 20,252 in December. Total mortgage lending fell to just £8bn in January, the lowest monthly amount for eight and a half years.

According to the BBA, "Many buyers had borrowed in December to beat the re-introduction of a lower stamp duty threshold". The BBA also attributed the cause of the decline to the exceptionally cold weather.

BBA statistics director, David Dooks, said, "It was no surprise to see the January mortgage figures falling back from December, when transactions were being pushed through to beat the end of stamp duty relief. There was a natural reaction in the January figures and the bad weather further suppressed market activity".

The BBA's figures echo those published last week by the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

"There has been a big hangover from the stamp duty holiday", says Melanie Bien, of Savills Private Finance, adding, "The very poor weather conditions meant everything ground to a halt".

Bein, however believes that the housing market is now about to enter a busier time of the year.