Bath Building Society has announced its annual results showing a pre-tax profit up 77% on last year and a 10.4% increase in its reserves from £15 to £17 million.
Chief Executive of Bath Building Society, Dick Jenkins said: “The strong performance of the Society owes much to the mortgage side of our business. Our results show the benefits of our long term strategy to lend to those good borrowers that for one reason or another fall foul of the big lenders’ one-size-fits-all lending policies.”
“We’ve also done our bit to help to first time buyers, in response to widespread reports of customers generally finding it hard to get mortgages. We have successfully increased our mortgage book over 2011 by introducing new innovative products specifically geared to helping first time buyers get onto the property ladder. We had a great deal of interest following the launch of our Income Plus mortgage last year, which allows single borrowers to take account of rental income where they let a room out in determining mortgage affordability. Also our Buy for Uni student mortgage and our Parent Assisted Mortgage products, targeted at customers with small deposits and parents willing and able to help out, have continued to perform well.”
“Our results are also helped by the fact that we haven’t seen a big upsurge in the number of arrears cases this year, despite pressures in the wider economy, and where borrowers have found themselves facing difficulties, the Society has helped by taking a very individual approach to each customers’ circumstances.”
“An increase in our savings balances over 2011 suggests that we remain competitive in this market and being able to attract new savings accounts means that we can fund our mortgage lending without becoming reliant on the financial markets. We continue to develop our proposition for small businesses, who have looked for better rates in these difficult times. Balances on our internet savings account are also growing steadily.”
“Overall I believe our traditional principle of getting to know our customers personally is really paying off and while we are still lending cautiously we are in a better position to take a more flexible approach with our customers than many of the larger providers. We continue to welcome enquires from borrowers and are keen to keep the upward momentum in our mortgage lending through 2012.”
Bath Building Society is the only independent Building Society with its headquarters in the South West. The Society is known for its involvement in the local communities it operates within through its sponsorship of events, corporate fundraising initiatives and its annual Charity Awards donation programme.
For more information see www.bathbuildingsociety.co.uk
