...Low Risk Profile: Yorkshire Building Society's (Yorkshire) ratings reflect its low risk profile. They take into consideration the society's business focus on low-risk prime residential mortgage lending, and the ongoing consolidation and integration of the various acquisitions it has made since the crisis. Negligible Specialist Loan Exposure: Yorkshire's exposure to legacy commercial real estate and specialist loans from its merger with Chelsea Building Society (CBS), now in run-off, is negligible. Commercial loans are advanced through the Norwich & Peterborough (N&P) brand but new commercial lending is small, representing less than 1% of the total loan book at end- 2014, and is well diversified across the UK. Moderate Appetite for Higher-LTV Lending: Although mortgages at loan/value ratios (LTVs) of 90% or more were only 4% of the book at end-2014, Fitch Ratings expects high-LTV exposure to moderately increase given Yorkshire's intention to maintain a first-time buyer offering. Risks should...
