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Mortgage lending took a surprise upward turn over December as mortgage lenders found that gross lending figures were up 14% on November's figures.

According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders, gross mortgage lending reached an estimated £13.7bn in December, a 14% rise from £12.1bn in November and up 3% on December 2008, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

This is the first time the annual monthly comparison has been in positive territory since October 2007, according to lenders, so this is a great indicator that more money is being lent to more people.

For 2009 as a whole, lending totalled £143.7bn and while this is unsurprisingly down 43% from £253bn in 2008 the total amount of mortgages lent in 2009 was above the predictions of the Council.

Paul Samter, economist at the CML says: "The December figure is surprisingly strong and there is evidence that the rise was driven by a surge in house purchase completions. The most likely explanation is that buyers of cheaper property wanted to complete their transactions before the end of the year to beat the end of the stamp duty holiday.

"There is every reason to expect a gradual improvement in mortgage lending. With a gradual pick up in economic growth and wider access to credit, 2010 will almost certainly be a better year in the mortgage market than 2009."

SOURCE: CML, 21/01/10

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