The West Brom Building Society reported record levels of homeowner lending in the first half of the financial year, with mortgages for first-time buyers increasing by 39%, surpassing the current market growth of 24%.
First-time buyers accounted for 66% of all new mortgage customers, up from 62% in 2023, helping over 3,000 customers purchase their first home.
Overall, the society achieved a 41% increase in homeowner lending to £646m in the first six months of the financial year.
The West Brom also announced pre-tax profits of £17.2m, up 26% from the same period last year.
Jonathan Westhoff, CEO at West Brom Building Society, said: “This year we’ve celebrated 175 years of helping people achieve their ambition of buying a home and saving to help secure their future.
“We’re especially proud to have helped over 3,000 first time buyers secure their own homes, a 41% increase compared with the same period last year.
“We’ve extended our offering for those with smaller deposits through our new build mortgage range, alongside our continued support for alternative routes to buying a home, such as shared ownership.
“These options, as well as our Differentiated Standard Variable Rate approach, have helped us achieve our highest ever homeowner lending in the first six months of a financial year.
Westhoff added: “On the savings side, we’ve welcomed over 7,000 new savers, an increase of 127% from the same period last year and maintained rates around a third higher than market average rates2 – demonstrating our commitment to providing value to all our members as a building society.
“This means savers have earned an additional £21.8m in interest above average market savings rates (6 months to 30 September 2023: £19.6m).
“Beyond this performance we’ve built on our commitment to making a positive impact in our communities.
Westhoff said: “In the period, we’ve provided 750 students across 18 schools with financial education sessions.
“We’ve also partnered with Birmingham based charity, Jericho, to support employment opportunities and engaged with 40 charities through our employee volunteer network. This is at the heart of what we do and why we do it.
“While the UK economy continues to show modest growth amid global uncertainty, with easing inflation lowering interest rates and mortgage costs, the market remains challenging.
“With a new government in place and ongoing economic pressures impacting household finances, it is encouraging the housing market has demonstrated resilience with house prices holding steady.
“Despite these challenges our strong financial performance, reflected in a 26% increase in pre-tax profits supports our capital strength and, therefore, capability to continue to support the vital segments in which we have grown strongly.”
