Nationwide lending sharply down
The value of mortgages agreed by the Nationwide building society fell 40% last year as tough credit conditions led it to scale back lending.
It agreed mortgage loans worth £6.7bn, down from £11.2bn the year before, describing its lending policy as “conservative and sustainable”.
The figures are in line with industry forecasts for a sharp reduction in total mortgage lending this year.
Nationwide also reported a 5% rise in annual profits to £686.1m.
Profits were boosted by a sharp rise in retail deposits placed with the building society.
Risk profile
Lenders have scrapped hundreds of deals in response to the credit crunch.
Whilst the environment will remain challenging, the market now has a much more transparent and realistic view of the cost of risk
Graham Beale, Nationwide chief executive