Net lending amounted to £356m compared to £412m in 2011 but mortgage balances increased by 3.5% to £10.5bn, up from £10.1bn in 2011.
However the building society celebrated a 64% increase in profit before tax which it states was principally driven by the return to profitability of the mortgages and savings division.
David Cutter, Skipton group chief executive, said: “We are pleased with the further upturn in our performance during 2012 which demonstrates that we have continued to balance appropriate business growth with prudence and a continuing focus on providing for our members’ financial needs.”
By the end of the year 83.1% of total funding was derived from retail savings balances compared to 80% to 2011 and 90% of group mortgage lending is derived from retail savings balances.
Lending to first-time buyers accounted for 16% of the full year’s lending while £64m of lending was to borrowers with “modest” deposits at a loan to value ratio of between 90 and 95%.
Cutter said: “We are confident of achieving further improvement during 2013 and beyond as the strength of our mortgages and savings division continues to gain momentum and is complemented by the continuing success of our estate agency business.”
