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Yorkshire BS delivered £10.3bn of mortgages in 2021

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  • 02/03/2022
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Yorkshire BS delivered £10.3bn of mortgages in 2021
Yorkshire Building Society has reported £10.3bn in gross mortgage lending for 2021 resulting in its total mortgage balances reaching £41.9bn, the highest in its history.

 

This was up on a gross lending figure of £7.1bn and a balance sheet figure of £38.8bn in 2020.

Its net lending totalled £3.1bn in 2021 and the mutual – which includes intermediary-only lender Accord Mortgages – provided 75,732 mortgages, up on 72,172 in 2020.  

It said it helped a record number of first-time buyers who made up a 36 per cent share of new lending at a total value of £3.6bn. 

Mortgage approvals at the mutual fell in October after the stamp duty holiday ended in September. However, they rose again in November and December and exceeded pre-pandemic averages, it reported. 

Overall, the mutual said along with its re-entry into the 95 per cent loan to value (LTV) market last year and its shared ownership lending, it helped a record 42,000 people purchase a home. 

Looking ahead, Yorkshire Building Society said competition in the mortgage market will remain high. It also said its mortgage proposition will be developed to help borrowers improve the energy efficiency of their properties. 

For the year ending 31 December 2021, profit before tax nearly doubled annually to £320m, compared to £161.3m in 2020. 

The mutual’s core operating profit increased to £297.3m, compared to £170.5m in 2020. Yorkshire Building Society attributed this to its work to reduce cost alongside “good commercial judgements and disciplines”. 

Stephen White (pictured), interim chief executive of Yorkshire Building Society, said he was delighted that despite the challenging year for the economy, the mutual was able to help customers with their financial needs. 

He added: “Our mutual model has helped us to deliver record savings and mortgage balances allowing us to both increase our savings rates and help a record number of first-time buyers.  

“The strength of our mortgage book has helped us to support borrowers facing serious financial difficulty and, at a time of rising house prices, release some of our provisions.” 

Yorkshire Building Society increased the minimum rate on most of its variable savings accounts to 0.5 per cent before the first base rate rise in December last year and further increased rates to 0.6 per cent last month. 

This, along with the launch of savings accounts, helped balances reach an all-time high of £35.5bn which supported its lending. 

White said: “Our role as a mutual is to deliver real help with real life and help people find a place to call home by providing mortgages, funded by our members’ savings. I’m particularly pleased that 2021 was a record year in terms of our support for first-time buyers, who are less well served by the wider market.” 

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