Navigating the ever-shifting needs of borrowers

Despite these challenges, the momentum generated by the mortgage market over the past couple of years continues to build, at pace.

The latest data from Legal & General Mortgage Club and SmartrCriteria suggests that overall mortgage search volumes rose by almost 80% in January, with demand amongst new buyers remaining a strong driver of activity. The figures showed that first-time buyer searches increased by 91% compared to December. This was paired with a rise in searches on behalf of first-time landlords, which jumped by 63%. Much of this demand is said to be backed by the Bank of Mum and Dad, as searches for those with gifted deposits grew by 88% in January. Similarly, searches for landlords with gifted equity grew by 82%, suggesting that those in the buy-to-let market may be benefitting from financial support from family members to boost their borrowing power.

We already knew that a vast number of first-time buyers need additional support when it comes to raising a deposit for their property purchase, but the steep rise in searches for landlords with gifted equity comes as far more of a surprise. This combination not only demonstrates the opportunities still on offer throughout the buy-to-let market but also the continued strength of homeownership aspirations and attitudes towards property-related investments in general.

Mortgage searches on behalf of borrowers with complex finances also soared between December and January. The SmartrCriteria data showed that searches by advisers for lenders willing to accept borrowers with an unsatisfied default rose by 157% over the last month. Searches for options suitable for those with unsecured arrears and missed mortgage repayments also climbed by 77% and 90% respectively. In addition, searches for those with debt management plans followed this trend and increased by 134%.

These findings echo recent research by Which?, revealing that 2.5 million families have failed to pay either their mortgage, rent, loans, credit cards or other bills so far this year. Borrowers are even looking for alternative mortgage products to help minimise their monthly outgoings and avoid the risk of a repayment blemish, as searches for interest-only mortgages grew by 85%.

The second half of this data really does demonstrate the breadth and complexity of the modern mortgage market and the ever-shifting needs of a variety of borrowers. When combined with the volume of cases still being seen by advisers, it’s not difficult to see how technology is playing an increasingly vital role within intermediary firms. By this I mean integrating technology to better navigate complex criteria fields and affordability calculations to pre-populate lender application forms and then seamlessly submit full mortgage applications without the need to re-key data.

Time remains the most valuable commodity we have and this is getting more precious by the day. Thankfully, there are a growing number of tech solutions, tools and platforms to help ensure we can automate more of the mundane admin tasks to ensure that our time in the workplace really is being maximised.