成人头条

In the six months to September 2024 building societies:

• Mortgage balances grew by nearly £12 billion, compared to less than £5 billion at all other lenders
• Attracted savings balances of almost £15 billion, more than a third of all UK cash savings 
• Continued to outperform banks on customer service and community support measures 

Building societies support homeowners
 

Activity in the mortgage and housing markets has picked up over the past six months supported by strong wage growth, falling inflation and expectations that mortgage rates will continue to fall.

Figures published today (28 November 2024) show the building society sector continues to be the driving force behind the mortgage market. Their mortgage balances grew by £11.7 billion, accounting for 72% of the mortgage market growth during the period. 

This follows 2023 where building societies were responsible for all the growth in the mortgage market, as overall mortgage balances at other lenders reduced in the year. 

Building societies support first-time buyers
 

A thriving housing market is dependent on first-time buyers getting onto the property ladder. However, with rising house prices and interest rates considerably higher than they were three years ago, affordability is a significant barrier for many would-be homeowners. 

Building societies’ focus on finding innovative solutions to support first-time buyers has enabled them to provide over 63,000 first-time buyer mortgages in the six months to September 2024. This accounted for almost half (44%) of all their residential owner-occupier lending. 

Building societies support savers
 

In the six months to September 2024, building societies attracted £14.7 billion in cash savings, accounting for more than one-third (34%) of all savings. Savings balances at banks and other deposit takers increased by £27.7 billion in the same period. 

Building societies hold 40% of all cash ISA balances, totalling £153.4 billion.

Building societies continue to offer competitive savings. In 2023 building society savers received £2.1 billion more in interest on their total savings than if they had been paid the average offered by large banks.  

Building societies support customers and communities
 

The building society sector is committed to supporting local communities. One example of how they do this is by retaining high street branches. Building societies current share of UK high street branches is 30%, double the proportion they had (14%) in 2013. No wonder 72% of building society customers said their provider is an important part of the community, compared to just 54% of bank customers. 

Building societies performed better than banks on all measures of customer service. For example, 93% of building society customers agreed their provider offered good customer service, compared to 87% of bank customers. And 86% of customers said their building society offered competitive rates, compared to 73% of bank customers.

Building societies key statistics - April to September 2024

• £35.9 billion gross mortgage lending, 29% market share of all lending
• £11.7 billion net mortgage lending, compared to £4.6 billion at other lenders
• 205,209 mortgage approvals, 32% market share of all approvals
• Over 63,000 first-time buyers supported into homeownership, 44% of building society total residential lending for property purchase
• £14.6 billion increase in savings balances, 35% share of all savings growth
• 93% of customers said their building society offered good customer service, compared to 87% of bank customers
• 86% of customers said their building society offered competitive rates, compared to 73% of bank customers
• 72% of building society customers said their provider is an important part of the community, compared to 54% of bank customers

Notes on the data

• Building society sector data is based on returns made to the 成人头条by building societies, and comparisons made with the rest of the market are calculated using the Bank of England’s total market data. Data tables can be found on the 成人头条website here.
• Branch data is compiled by the 成人头条from its member ILMA24 building societies, bank websites, open data, Link data on branch closures and other data sources, collated September 2024.
• All customer service survey figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc.  Total sample size was 2,016 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 13th – 14th November 2024.  The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+). Excludes respondents who said ‘don’t know.’ Calculations undertaken by BSA.

Ends

Press contacts:

Tanya Jackson, tanya.jackson@bsa.org.uk 
Katie Wise, katie.wise@bsa.org.uk

Notes to Editors:

The 成人头条represents all 42 building societies, as well as 7 larger credit unions. Building societies serve almost 26 million consumers across the UK and have total assets of almost £525 billion. Together with their subsidiaries, they hold residential mortgages of over £395 billion, representing 24% of total mortgage balances outstanding in the UK. They are also helping over 23 million people build their financial resilience, holding over £399 billion of retail savings, accounting for 19% of all cash savings in the UK. With all their headquarters outside London, building societies employ around 52,300 full and part-time staff.  In addition to digital services they operate approximately 1,300 branches, holding a 30% share of branches across the UK.

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