A mutual building society is an organisation that is run entirely for the benefits of its members. In contrast to high street banks, a mutual building society, like The Nottingham, does not have to maximise profits to pay dividends to outside shareholders. This means that extra benefits can be passed on to customers.
Since 1849 we have a proud tradition of putting our customers first and value ‘people before profit’. We are firmly committed to remaining a mutual society and believe that we can continue to best serve the needs of our members, and the wider business community, in this way.
By remaining a successful, traditional building society, The Nottingham can continue to offer attractive and varied products combined with a convenient branch network. Through our commitment to provide excellent customer service, we bring the benefits of being a building society customer to more and more people within the communities we serve.
Since 1849 we have a proud tradition of putting our customers first and value ‘people before profit’. We are firmly committed to remaining a mutual society and believe that we can continue to best serve the needs of our members, and the wider business community, in this way.
By remaining a successful, traditional building society, The Nottingham can continue to offer attractive and varied products combined with a convenient branch network. Through our commitment to provide excellent customer service, we bring the benefits of being a building society customer to more and more people within the communities we serve.
Why we're better off together
There are several important reasons why The Nottingham is committed to remaining a traditional, mutual building society:
1. Putting people before profit
Banks, unlike building societies, are driven by their need to satisfy pressure from outside shareholders to make profits. To increase share value and dividend payments, the banks - some of which are converted building societies - must maximise profit. This means that banks are loyal to their shareholders, while the needs of their customers come second.
By contrast, we only have to make enough profit to maintain our financial strength. Our priorities are different from banks, so we can give back surplus profit to our members by way of lower mortgage rates and higher savings rates.
By contrast, we only have to make enough profit to maintain our financial strength. Our priorities are different from banks, so we can give back surplus profit to our members by way of lower mortgage rates and higher savings rates.
2. More choice for savers and borrowers
Through our continuing presence as a mutual organisation, we can, with other building societies, offer wider choice and greater value in the financial market-place which acts as a competitive restraint on banks.
3. Focused services
As a traditional building society, we believe customer value is not just about money. We concentrate on providing a focused range of house purchase and personal finance services for the benefit of our members. This focus enables us to provide customers with an excellent level of service and sets us apart from banks.
4. Local knowledge
As an independent regional building society, we have a depth of local knowledge which helps us to make the right decisions when lending money to homebuyers.
5. Community benefits
The Nottingham is a community-based building society committed to the region it serves. We recognise that being a traditional building society involves more than just providing financial services.
6. Local employer using local suppliers
As an independent regional building society, The Nottingham is a significant local employer providing jobs for over 450 people.
We place great emphasis on using local suppliers, wherever possible. We input a minimum of £5 million into the region every year which helps develop the local economy and contributes to the prosperity of the region.
We place great emphasis on using local suppliers, wherever possible. We input a minimum of £5 million into the region every year which helps develop the local economy and contributes to the prosperity of the region.