Profits dip at Leeds Building Society as it describes 'turbulent' market for savers and borrowers

Profits have fallen at Leeds Building Society despite growth in mortgage lending and savings balances in its 150th year.

Newly published 2024 results show the mutual saw operating profit fall from £181.5m to £137.5m. Underlying pre-tax profit - adjusted for the repurchase of shares, a revaluation of its head office and the cost of a financial support scheme for victims of the Philips Trust Corporation collapse - was up from £181.5m to £187.5m.

The society finished the year with a record number of members at 991,000 - a 7.8% growth on the previous year. Meanwhile gross mortgage lending grew from £4.4bn to £5.7bn and net lending of was boosted from £1.5bn to £2.6bn - a 12% increase year-on-year. Bosses said a drop in the level of mortgage arrears from 0.61% to 0.58% demonstrated the strength of Leeds' affordability testing and lending criteria.

Record net savings growth of £3.7bn, up from £3.3bn, meaning total savings balances reached £24.5bn - more than 18% higher than 2023.

Richard Fearon, chief executive officer of Leeds Building Society said: "The milestone of our 150th anniversary offers the opportunity to reflect on how far our society has come. We were helping people onto the housing ladder before the invention of the telephone and the lightbulb, and our purpose remains as relevant as ever today. It's a real privilege to be announcing record-breaking results for a fourth successive year, and I'm incredibly proud of the progress we continue to make to deliver our purpose and support members.

"Our total membership reached an all-time high at the end of 2024. Mortgage completions broke records and savings balances are higher than they have ever been. Interest payments above and beyond the average market rate totalled £175m, as we continue to demonstrate value to our members."

He added: "Our underlying profit of £187.5m resulted from record trading performance in a turbulent market for both savers and borrowers. As a mutual, we don't have any external shareholders to pay dividends to, and our strong financial performance allows us to invest significantly in our business. We opened a new branch, refurbished and relocated others and improved our online services, allowing members to better engage with us in the way that works best for them.