Additionally, 97% of buy-to-let lending for the year to 30 September 2021 was classed as specialist, reflecting the bank’s increased focus on this area of the market.
Paragon’s buy-to-let pipeline at the close of the period stood at £1.01bn, up from £868m recorded in 2020. The net loan book grew 7.9% to £11.4bn.
Richard Rowntree, Paragon Bank director of mortgages, said: “We enjoyed a very strong 2021 thanks to our landlord customers expanding their portfolios to meet record levels of tenant demand.
“Our buy-to-let completions were up significantly on the previous year, bringing much-needed new housing into the private rented sector.
“The stamp duty holiday clearly helped drive transactions, but I believe a more fundamental shift in how and where we want to live underpinned business levels.
“The pandemic unlocked a generation of homemovers in both the owner-occupied and rented space. “A key highlight for me during the year was the launch of our green proposition.
“Upgrading the energy efficiency of the private rented sector will be a difficult challenge, but one Paragon is committed to playing a role in. We will continue to innovate in this space to help our customers invest in more energy efficient homes, as well as upgrade existing stock.”
Overall Paragon Banking Group reported a 61.8% increase in pre-tax profits to £194.2m for the full-year.
Nigel Terrington, chief executive of Paragon, added: “We have delivered an outstanding performance in 2021, which is testament to the strength of our operating model, the quality of our customer base and the capability and adaptability of our people.
“Every lending business in the group has this year made excellent progress, and at over £2.6bn, aggregate new lending now comfortably exceeds pre-pandemic levels.
“These results validate our longstanding strategy to concentrate on specialist lending markets where we can add value for our customers with complex requirements.”
