Gary Salter is Nationwide’s head of corporate accounts
If a lender wants to drive business volumes, then working closely with brokers is often the most successful option.
It’s a given that borrowers want to ensure they have the right mortgage at the right price, but do not necessarily want to or have time to – and the inclination to - search for the best deal.
After all, it’s not easy being a borrower these days.
At first glance, the availability of mortgages may have increased in terms of products on the market. Accessing them, however, is an altogether trickier matter.
With a wide variety of personal circumstances, often multiple income streams and a difficult and unpredictable economic climate, the added value service that mortgage brokers can offer is more important than ever for borrowers looking to secure the best deal.
Yet sourcing and obtaining a mortgage to suit a customer’s individual circumstances depends to a large extent on skill of the broker and their relationships with lenders.
A broker needs the mortgage to be processed as quickly as possible to demonstrate added value, particularly where a fee is being charged.
Equally, both lenders and brokers have a keen interest in the deal passing through the system as soon as possible as pipeline business carries no value until completion.
All lenders from time to time will have service issues, whether due to business volumes, product withdrawal or simply lack of resource and when this happens, the broker feels real pain as he or she is held responsible for recommending the mortgage from a particular lender.
Lenders don’t always get it right and there may be legitimate issues to address when it comes to the mortgage process, such as lack of available contacts in the event of queries.
Equally, there are times when the broker is not blameless either, perhaps where important detail is missing on an application or requests for documentation are left unanswered. Working together to make it all go as smoothly as possible is the key.
There are many brokers who never seem to have service issues with lenders, most likely due to their understanding of the lenders’ processes and lending policy and once MMR arrives, this will be even more relevant.
The information and documentation required in connection with a mortgage application may vary from lender to lender but the earlier in the process this is collected can have a significant outcome on the speed to offer.
In return, lenders need to ensure that they communicate their requirements and address broker’s questions in a timely manner.
The bottom line is that lenders and brokers must work together and support each other to make the process as painless as possible.
