Newcastle ups lending by 18.8%

Operating profit was steady year-on-year, rising by £0.1m to £6.2m – with more income being offset by investment in people and infrastructure.

Newcastle ups lending by 18.8%

Newcastle Building Society upped gross mortgage lending to £303m in the first six months of 2017 – an 18.8% increase from the same period of 2016.

Operating profit was steady year-on-year, rising by £0.1m to £6.2m – with more income being offset by investment in people and infrastructure.

Andrew Haigh, chief executive of Newcastle Building Society chief executive, said: “We’ve made some very positive progress already this year and we’re proud of the milestones we’ve already achieved, both financially, and in delivering on the contract we have with the region.

“This extends beyond a commitment to the fundamentals of providing a robust regional building society and branch network, but also sees us driving growth to generate career opportunities for people across the North East, investing in our communities, and building an organisation the region can be proud of.”

Net lending improved from £116m to £155m in the first half of 2017 compared to the same period in 2016.

Levels of mortgage arrears fell from 0.47% to 0.39%.