Interest rates in all but commercial lending experienced a drop in average rates, alongside a fall in average loan to value percentages.

Elsewhere, average residential loan sizes dramatically fell to just over £400,000, a decrease of over 40 per cent - with development loans also falling by 3 per cent.

We caught up with a few industry faces, to see what they thought of the statistics, and whether or not they felt it was representative of the current state of the market.

Joshua Elash, Director of MT Finance, said:  “The data is in line with the information provided by other trade bodies in the industry, which point to a slowing of growth in the bridging finance sector.

“Set against the backdrop of reports of a resurgent Buy to Let sector we would not be surprised to see the bridging finance market contract in the near future. The reported shift in pricing is a natural by-product of an already competitive marketplace confronted with slowing supply'”

Speaking on the news, Bob Sturges, Head of Communications at Omni Capital, said: "As a leading lender active in the residential short and medium-term markets, the latest set of figures from the AoBP generally accord with our own recent experience. Both average LTVs and monthly rates appear to us to be holding fast or reducing slightly. This is good news for lenders from a risk perspective, and for borrowers in terms of the price they pay.

"Lower average rates can, I believe, be attributed to a number of factors. First, there is more competition among lenders. Second, canny investors continue to find bridging attractive and are bringing with them fresh, and often cheaper, sources of funding. And third, brokers are getting better at understanding lenders' appetite for risk with an attendant improvement in the quality of loan applications. As quality improves, so lenders are more willing and able to reduce price.

"Perhaps reflective of Omni Capital's appeal as a provider of premium high-value bridging finance, we are not seeing a particular lowering in average loan values. This applies across both first and second-charge lending categories, and is not entirely surprising given our focus on London and the south-east and the strength of property price inflation in these in-demand regions of the UK. Lenders with a different geographical perspective may have an alternative story to tell."

Speaking from a packager’s point of view, Rob Jupp, CEO at Brightstar Financial, said: “The figures are indicative to where the bridging market is heading, there is now a good blend of lenders all with a good perception of the necessary criteria to carry out short term lending.

“The average rates in this month’s AOBP report are welcomed, as its shows clearly that different product areas attract different risks and are priced appropriate.

“These give lenders, brokers and ultimately consumers a good reference source on actual rates, debt sizes and LTV for each of the product areas.”

Also speaking on the news, Ashley Ilsen, New Business Executive at Regentsmead, said: “The way I see it is lower interest rates is perhaps a signal that high street banks may be increasing their activity. That being said, although banks are still pressured to be lending there’s still a huge impetus to lower their gearing and ultimately become more risk adverse and this is perhaps why we are seeing more activity at lower LTVs than previously experienced.

"Development lending in particular is subject to seasonal changes and perhaps needs to be reviewed over a longer period of time. For example an extended winter that we saw in 2013 would have caused a backlog in developers waiting on finance for their projects."