This is 9% up on May’s lending total of £20.3bn, and a modest 3% increase on the £21.5bn lent in June last year.

The figure brings total lending for quarter two of this year to £60.3bn, up 6% compared to 2016, and 3% higher than the first quarter of 2017.

But UK Finance senior economist Mohammad Jamei was cautious about the future: “A period of belt-tightening now seems to be underway as inflation begins to erode consumer spending power, and consumer confidence weakens”, he explained. “Given that the economy and housing market are closely linked, this has contributed to the activity plateau since the start of the year.

“Looking ahead, housing market activity is likely to reflect economic conditions – a deterioration would likely dampen first-time buyer numbers and homeowners remortgaging – the factors that have supported lending recently.”

Henry Woodcock, principal mortgage consultant at IRESS, added: “The overall trend this year continues to be one of a generally resilient market. Lending has shown an increase for the second consecutive month and sales in the first six months are on a par with last year, even without the April 2016 Stamp Duty sales boost.

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“Although landlord confidence has dipped in the last few months as tax regulations continue to squeeze the buy-to-let sector, growth in lending is continuing for first-time buyers, home movers and those remortgaging.”