Official figures reveal that there were 31,000 loans approved for house purchase in December, a 14 per cent increase on the 27,000 approved in November.
However, December's figure was slightly down on the average over the previous six months (32,000), and is significantly down on the 73,000 approvals recorded in December 2007.
The number of people remortgaging – 36,000 - was lower than in November (41,000) and well below the six-month average of 66,000.
RICS chief economist Simon Rubinsohn said: "The pick-up in activity reflects in part the increased interest from buyers who are being attracted to the market by both the fall in house prices and drop in mortgage rates.
"Interestingly, the increased supply of mortgage finance in December came exclusively from banks while both building societies and other lenders remained on the sidelines.
"The RICS New Buyer Enquiries series suggests that mortgage approvals could rise a little further over the coming months but more mortgage finance is urgently needed to help meet this demand. The likely introduction of 'mortgage guarantees' in April should go some way to help address this issue."
Commenting on the figures, Vicky Redwood of Capital Economics said: "December’s rise in mortgage approvals might be a sign that the rise in new buyer interest seen over the past few months is finally boosting housing market activity. But we wouldn’t get too excited.
"For a start, the rise from 27,000 to 31,000 simply reversed November’s drop – approvals are still 76 per cent down on their peak. Meanwhile, we find it hard to see approvals picking up significantly further when credit is still so hard to get.
"Of course, the latest approvals figures pre-date the Government’s latest banking package. However, the measures won’t be in place for a while yet and even then, we’re not convinced about how effective they will be. Overall, then, no convincing signs of a housing recovery yet."
Adrian Coles, Director-General of the Building Societies Association, added: "Activity in the housing market remains very depressed, and as a result the amount of mortgage lending in December was low.
"House prices are widely expected to fall further and unemployment is rising, so potential buyers remain cautious and are staying out of the market as they wait for it to stabilise."
