Gropss mortgage lending for 2011 was £165m, up from £147m in 2010.
Mortgage balances were were up by 10% to £759m for the year, up from £690m in 2010, while its retail balances grew by 25.8% to £986m.
The Saffron is the latest mutual to reveal rising gross mortgage lending for the year, following strong results from the likes of Coventry, Skipton and Leeds building societies.
Saffron said that its group assets increased by 17% year-on-year to £1.086bn, the first time the mutual’s assets have topped the £1bn mark, which it claimed made it the largest independent building society in the East of England.
Jon Hall, chief executive of the Saffron, said: “2011 was a tough year for the economy and for family finances.
“At Saffron, we have focused on providing a consistent and fair return for our savers despite the low interest rate environment, actively lent to individual property owners and supported the communities we serve.
“With many increasingly coming around to the view that the mutual way is demonstrably the better way, Saffron’s strong and profitable performance in 2011 serves to prove our resilience to market conditions and supports the high levels of trust our members demonstrate in Saffron.”
