Mortgage debt has almost reached £1 trillion, according to figures from the Bank of England.
An extra £8.5bn was borrowed to buy homes in April, bringing the outstanding amount of mortgage debt to exactly £999.2bn.
But the value of unmortgaged property is much higher, at £3.6 trillion.
With people owing another £192bn on credit cards, loans and hire purchase agreements, total personal debt now stands at £1.191 trillion.
Outstanding mortgage debt is now certain to go through the £1 trillion level next month.
But while the figure stands as a landmark, Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) chief Michael Coogan believes it does not have any particular significance in terms of policy-making.
"Although it is a milestone, it will perhaps soon be forgotten as home-ownership and mortgage lending continue to grow further," he said recently.
The CML regards the rising figure as an indicator of growing home ownership: up from 60% of the population to 70% in the past two decades.
The CML also argues that there are few signs that home ownership has reached a natural limit. It says it expects continuing growth of both home ownership and mortgage lending in the foreseeable future.
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