Gross mortgage lending in United Kingdom jumps 8% month on month

Britain’s second largest mortgage lender said pretax profits for the six months to the end of September were £802m, up from £598m on the same period a year ago.

The average SVR rate among mainstream lenders is 4.82 per cent, whereas a two year fixed rate re-mortgage (at 90 per cent Loan to Value) can be more than two per cent lower, including HSBC’s at 2.38 per cent. House prices have continued to rise, but are increasing at a slower pace than in 2014, the low base rate means mortgage rates are at affordable levels, and consumers have also been supported by wage growth and low inflation.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders estimates that gross mortgage lending reached £21.8 billion in October – 8% higher than September’s lending total of £20.1 billion.

Nationwide said the results demonstrated it was possible to offer a strong mutual alternative to the established banks.

Nationwide, the UK’s biggest building society, has reported a jump in pre-tax profits thanks to record mortgage lending.

“Our first-half performance reflects the growing strength and security of the Society with all of our core product areas delivering standout results”.

Nationwide Building Society has expressed disappointment that the chancellor included it in the introduction of the tax surcharge on banks announced in the Budget. We serve a social goal by providing a safe home for savings and finance for home ownership.

Graham Beale, the chief executive of the mutual, which is owned by its customers, said it was evidence that, “you can be successful by doing the right thing”.

Nationwide said it remained first for customer satisfaction among its peer group and represented just 2.1% of industry complaints to the Financial Conduct Authority despite its size and market activity.

Overall, around 135,000 homes were completed in the year to September, a 17 per cent increase on the previous year but still far short of the Government’s target of more than 200,000 per year.