Last year saw the lowest level of mortgage lending since 2002 as it fell by 30 per cent, reports quoting the Council of Mortgage Lenders have said.

There was a total lending of £256.4 billion in 2008, compared to £363.7 billion in the previous year.

The mortgage drought was reportedly caused by the credit crunch as it became quite harder to get access to loans.

Falling house prices, analyst said, also contributed in making many people unwilling to invest their money.

In December of the same year, according to the CML, the lowest monthly level of mortgage lending since 2001 was recorded.

Total lending fell to £12.6 billion in the month, from £14.2 billion in November and 47 per cent lower than December 2007.

However, another data from Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), added reports, suggests that 61,000 home sales were completed in December, showing a fall of 41 per cent compared to the same period in 2007.