Leeds Building Society has announced its gross mortgage lending total for 2024, and it is the best figure the company has recorded in its entire history.
The lender saw a remarkable rise of 30% in its gross mortgage lending last year, which took the total to £5.7 billion. That success was accompanied by an increase in market share, as well as in the mortgage asset balance. When it comes to the latter, there was a rise of 12% in comparison to the year before. That left it at £24.4 billion, which is also a record for Leeds BS.
It was loans for first-time buyers that accounted for much of the rise in the gross lending total. These made up 47% of the new mortgages underwritten by Leeds BS during 2024. The company introduced products that were targeted at those buyers over the course of the year.
The building society’s report for the year shows that new loans came with higher average loan-to-value ratios too. Whereas the average as a whole was 54.2%, for new mortgages it was 66.8%.
Richard Fearon, the chief executive for Leeds BS, stated that the lender was aware of how difficult the market could be for those buying a first home. He went on to add that this was why Leeds BS was so determined to do all it could to help with that.
These figures will please those with the CeMAP qualification, because they indicate a market that is healthy and that will provide plenty of business for them.
