Pretax profit by the mutual rose 19% from 2010 to £50.2m in 2011.
Leeds’ new residential lending in 2011 increased by 25% to £1.32bn from £984m the previous year as the mutual attracted 58,000 new members taking the total membership to a record 691,000.
The average loan to value of loans in 2011 was just 51%.
Peter Hill, chief executive of Leeds, said: “Leeds has again delivered an excellent set of financial results and provided even more capacity in the UK mortgage market, especially to first-time-buyers.
“I am particularly pleased that my first results as chief executive saw record operating profit and our membership and savings balances reached their highest ever levels.
“We also saw new mortgage lending increase by 25%, to £1.23bn, which is one and half times our natural market share.”
He said: “Furthermore £290m of this, almost 24%, has helped 4,000 first-time buyers onto the property ladder.
“We intend to increase lending further in 2012 and this will include more availability of 95% LTV loans which we see as an important contribution to supporting home ownership, the housing market and the wider economy.”
Leeds is currently one of only three building societies with an “A” long term credit rating from both Moody’s and Fitch.
Hill concluded: “Throughout the downturn, we have continued to invest in the business and be an active player in the savings and mortgage markets, the benefits of which can be clearly seen in our results.
“We are in an excellent position to continue to focus on doing what we do best: provide good value for money products backed up by excellent service, delivered by our highly professional staff throughout this year and beyond.”
