Media Centre
Press release
RATE INCREASES START TO BITE
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Contact: Neil Johnson Date: 20 Aug 2007 |
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- Building society gross advances amounted to £4,465m in July 2007, compared to £4,888m in July 2006.
- Net Advances were £598m in July 2007, versus £1,662m in July 2006.
- Approvals were £4,014m in July 2007 down from £5,499m in July 2006.
- Building societies had net receipts of £723m in July 2007 compared to £444m in July 2006.
- Building Society net receipts to cash ISAs were £167m in July 2007, compared to £119m in July 2006.
Commenting on the mortgage figures, Adrian Coles, Director General of the BSA said:
“This is a tale of the five interest rate rises in the last year feeding through to the market. The strong start to the year has fallen away, with gross lending in July representing an 8.7% decrease on gross advances a year before.
“As mortgage payments increase, household finances are likely to be squeezed further. Even if interest rates are near to their peak, potential borrowers need to think about all of their outgoings to make sure they do not overstretch themselves financially.
“Societies are continuing to ensure that they lend responsibly to people who can afford to borrow. This ensures that borrowers should be able to repay their loans - societies don’t want to lend to people who are going to have difficulty making repayments.”
Commenting on the savings figures, Mr. Coles said:
“Savings in July increased strongly from a year ago, with net receipts up 62.8% compared to July 2006. The higher rates of interest on offer compared to year ago are tempting savers to make additional deposits.”
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The Building Societies Association (BSA) represents all 60 building societies in the United Kingdom. Building societies have total assets of almost £315 billion and hold residential mortgages of just under £215 billion, approximately 18% of the total outstanding in the UK. Societies hold over £200 billion of retail deposits, accounting for about 19% of all such deposits in the UK. Building societies employ over 50,000 full and part-time staff and operate through more than 2,100 branches
Photographs of Adrian Coles are available from the BSA press office, or from the Association’s website at www.bsa.org.uk or Headline Money www.headlinemoney.co.uk
CONTACT: Neil Johnson
DIRECT LINE: 020 74402260
NIGHT/WEEKEND: 07908 764549
EMAIL: neil.johnson@bsa.org.uk
