The group, which owns estate agent Connells, says it notched up almost 30,000 completions and lent over £5.8bn.  

Its mortgage portfolio grew by 9.6% to £25.5bn on a year ago, as it lent to 13,800 first-time buyers and saw over 17,000 customers switch their existing mortgage to stay with the mutual.  

The firm described its interest margin as “robust” growing to 1.35% from 1.03% a year ago, as the Bank of England raised interest rates eight times during the period to 3.50% from 0.25% at the start of the year.  

During the year, the business launched its first paperless mortgage offers, allowing the distribution of key documents to customers in real-time. It also rolled out an online help centre.  

Connells saw its full-year pre-tax profit slump by 39% to £67.5m, due to “challenging housing market conditions”. The number of properties the division exchanged contracts on during the year fell by 18% in the period.  

Skipton group chief executive Stuart Haire says the firm’s “unique business mix and mutual status helps support our society members and group customers now and in the future”.  

The mutual says its CET 1 ratio, which measures a firm’s capital against risk-weighted assets, was cut to 25.8% from 44.6% a year ago, driven by the estimated impact of moving to hybrid internal-ratings-based models due to regulatory changes.  

Its savings balances grew by a record 13.6% to £22.5bn.  

The business celebrates its 170th anniversary this year.