The mortgage market looks likely to continue to slowdown in the coming months, it has been predicted.

Figures released by the Building Societies Association (BSA) revealed that while borrowers had been able to obtain mortgages worth £4,654 million in October, this was dramatically less than the £4,936 million that was borrowed in the same month last year.

Adrian Coles, director general of the BSA, described the mortgage market as "subdued", warning: "The mortgage market looks set to cool further as the impact of the higher interest rates and tighter credit conditions more generally continue to feed through."

Commenting on the figures, economic forecasting firm Global Insight said: "Rising concerns about the overall state of the economy may well make people more unwilling to risk stretching themselves to buy a house."

It added that as lenders become choosier about whom they approve mortgages for and the impact of interest rate increases continue to bite, buying would become less attractive, with high house prices also contributing to the slowdown.