Brookline Bancorp closed the third quarter this year with gains in income nearly three times the amount earned during the same period last year.

The bank earned $5.24 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared to $1.75 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2008 – a 299 percent increase.

Year-to-date, Brookline Bancorp recorded net income of $13.36 million; last year during the same period, Brookline saw $8.12 million in net income – a 61 percent increase.

The bank said its success was due to $200.8 million in deposit growth thus far in ’09, $27.7 million of which occurred in the third quarter; a reduction in its provision for loan losses due to a decline in automobile loan charge-offs; $1.61 million in income in the second quarter resulting from full payment of a loan; and gains on sales of mortgage-backed securities of $594,000 in the third quarter and $940,000 in the nine-month period.

Its board of directors also approved a dividend of $0.085 per share payable Nov. 13 to stockholders of record on Oct. 30.