CINCINNATI — Swapalease.com reported today that lease credit approvals during the month of January were at 70.5%, down from the 73.3% level in December 2013. Credit approval levels have experience some recent turbulence, officials said, rising as high as 73.3% and dropping as low as 62.9% in September of 2013.

The credit approvals rate over the last six months stands at 71.6%, with the approval rate over the last 12 months showing little change at 71.8%. Swapalease.com considers 70% to be healthy for the lease transfer marketplace, meaning seven out of 10 car shoppers are approved to take over a lease through transfer.

Consumer credit continues to expand among American shoppers. Reuters recently reported that total consumer credit increased to $3.1 trillion in December, a jump of $18.8 billion, according to the Federal Reserve. Economist polled by Reuters expected consumer credit to increase by $12 billion. Non-revolving credit, which includes auto loans, increased $13.8 billion during December.

“Our lease credit approval trends affirm what the Federal Reserve is reporting on broader credit trends,” said Scot Hall, executive vice president of Swapalease.com. “As more consumers expand their use of credit, combined with a larger number of customers applying for transfer, we’re seeing a larger number of both approvals and non-approvals reported by our finance partners.”