The West Brom Building Society has reported record levels of homeowner lending in the first half of the financial year, with mortgages to first time buyers increasing by 39%, exceeding the current market growth of 24%¹.

First time buyers made up 66% of all new mortgage customers (62% in 2023), helping over 3,000 customers purchase their first home, while contributing to the Society’s highest-ever level of homeowner lending, up 41% to £646m, in the first six months of the financial year.

The Society also announced strong pre-tax profits of £17.2m, an increase of 26% from the same period last year.

Jonathan Westhoff, Chief Executive Officer, 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.

“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 rates² (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. 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.”

Key highlights to the end of September 2024:

• Lent £646m of mortgages to people so they can buy their own home. This is an increase of 41%, and the highest amount of home ownership lending reached in the first half of a financial year during the Society’s 175 year history (30 September 2023: £458m).
• Helped 3,125 first time buyers buy their own home, 41% more than the same period last year.
• Delivered £23.7m of member benefits to customers:
  • Savers earned a total of £21.8m in interest over the average savings rates in the market² (30 September 2023: £19.6m), welcoming 7,640 new savers to the Society, an increase of 127%.
  • Mortgage customers paying the Society’s unique Differentiated Standard Variable Rate paid £1.9m less interest than if they had paid the average rate offered by the market³ at the end of their mortgage deal (30 September 2023: £1.3m).
• Savers earned a total of £21.8m in interest over the average savings rates in the market² (30 September 2023: £19.6m), welcoming 7,640 new savers to the Society, an increase of 127%.
• Mortgage customers paying the Society’s unique Differentiated Standard Variable Rate paid £1.9m less interest than if they had paid the average rate offered by the market³ at the end of their mortgage deal (30 September 2023: £1.3m).
• Profit before tax grew by 26% to £17.2m (30 September 2023: £13.6m) with a Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 17.1% (31 March 2024: 17.8%). This strong capital position means the Society can continue to support more people to buy their own homes and invest for future customers.
• Since April 2024, the financial education team, made up of staff volunteers, has reached 750 students across 18 local schools. The team has also developed a new financial education session to help support vulnerable adults who are experiencing financial hardship.
• The Society announced its new partnership with Birmingham based charity Jericho – who work to provide vital support and activities to those experiencing isolation, by supporting recovery, inclusion, and employability.

To read the full interim report, visit www.westbrom.co.uk.

Footnotes:

¹ UK Finance mortgage completion reporting for September tables BTL22, S1 final.
² Weighted average market rates sourced from Bank of England Bankstats table A6.1 April 24 to Sept 24.
³ Weighted average market reversion rate sourced from Moneyfacts April 24 to Sept 24.