YBS Commercial Mortgages has confirmed it supported the PRS sector with £413.2m of loans in 2022.
According to the YBS’ Annual Report and Accounts document for 2022, the amount lent to the PRS sector focused on key areas of concern, such as fire safety and property conditions.
The lender also completed £115.7m of commercial investment lending to support other key sectors, including the industrial and retail property markets, as well as the leisure industry.
Overall, the specialist finance provider has seen its gross commercial lending volume grow to £600m in 2022 — doubling the level reported in the previous year.
This figure — which includes product transfers for existing customers — signifies an increase in the value of the lender’s customer base to more than £1.5bn, and a record in new lending for the commercial lending arm of Yorkshire Building Society.
Regionally, YBS Commercial Mortgages provided a total of £260.9m of new lending in London and the South East, £127.6m in the Midlands, £77.6m in the South West and Wales, and £43.1m in the North.
The lender attributed its success over the last 12 months to propositional and pipeline efficiency improvements — including the launch of its broker portal, criteria changes to ensure products are as accessible as possible, and service enhancements which have reduced processing times.
The firm also confirmed it is continuing its focus on recruitment to strengthen its regional teams and ensure its relationship directors are available wherever brokers need them.
Tom Simpson, managing director at YBS Commercial Mortgages (pictured above), said: “2022 was a real turning point for us in terms of realising our ambitions to help more landlords and small businesses to thrive in a challenging market.
“I’m absolutely delighted with the long-term, stable funding we’ve been able to provide to the commercial market to date through our regional hubs, which sit at the heart of our business.
“We have plans to deliver even more this year and beyond, with more than £750m available in funding, allowing us to support more clients who need us, with a continued focus on providing our award-winning personal service.
“In 2023, we’re focused on product development and analytics to determine further market opportunities, broker and client support, and customer journey improvements; it’s a very exciting time for us as a business.”
