Arrears improve at Paragon

28th Jan 2010 07:21

The dark days appear to be behind specialist mortgage lender Paragon, with the company's portfolio of loans performing in line, but the group is not yet ready to start lending again.Redemptions in the final quarter of 2009 remained low and at similar levels to those seen in the six months to the end of September, while customer payment performance continues to be superior to market wide data, the company said.The buy to let market is looking steadier on its feet with the arrears position showing an improvement, despite the Christmas period traditionally being a period when borrowers are strapped for cash. The percentage of accounts three months or more in arrears fell to 1.5% from 1.54% at the end of September.The financial performance in the final three months of 2009 – the first quarter of the group’s financial year – was in line with management’s expectations, with pre-tax profits of around £13.1m. The group expects mortgage redemption rates to remain subdued in 2010. As for new lending business, the group is still waiting for the funding market to stabilise. ‘In the meantime we shall continue to seek new business opportunities to supplement growth,’ the group said.