Hinckley & Rugby half year boosted by retentions

Building society Hinckley & Rugby beat its lending target in the first half of its current financial year, racking up £96m of processed mortgage applications, 37 per cent ahead of the same period a year before.

For the six months from December 2015 to the end of May 2016 saw mortgage advances of £74m, ahead of the £59m achieved in the same period a year ago.

The half year included the Society’s two biggest months – April and May – for mortgage business since the credit crunch. The mortgage book grew by £6m in May alone.

The half year closed with the mortgage book at £495m and a pipeline of mortgage applications totalling £59m. Hinckley & Rugby is now forecasting full-year advances of around £170m, almost a third ahead of last year’s £128m.

Hinckley & Rugby chief executive Chris White said: “The half year results are hugely encouraging for the full year. Retaining ever more mortgage customers is great for the Society and for those customers.

“A strong pipeline of mortgage business is also good news for savers, as we need to fund this growth and have some very competitive savings products. All of our achievements, which we work hard for on behalf of our members, are thanks to our dedicated staff.”