James Briggs, head of intermediary sales, personal finance, Together
“Just before the New Year, as people were setting goals for 2022, we surveyed the British population to understand their property objectives for the year ahead and any anticipated challenges.
The results revealed an ambitious nation — over half had dreams they wanted to achieve this year. But the same optimism wasn’t felt for their borrowing options: 28% of respondents said accessing finance would be their main barrier, and more than 45% of first-time buyers (FTBs) and 50% of self-employed participants had doubts they could get a mortgage.
Brokers hold the key to improving a borrower’s confidence in their finance options
The reasons were varied, but complex income, poor credit, age and deposit kept cropping up. Almost six months on, these are pulling through into our cases.
We’ve been working closely with our panel of specialist packagers to support these clients and keep their ambitions moving. But there are more people we could help if they were referred to us sooner and I think the challenge stems from a lack of awareness.”
Ian Balfour, sales & marketing director, TFC Homeloans, says:
“As a specialist packager, many of the cases coming through us from brokers feature clients with irregular and complex income, and this has only increased following the upheaval of the pandemic.
I’ve heard around one in five people changed their employment during Covid, and of course many took a payment holiday, which could’ve dented their credit and ability to borrow from mainstream lenders.
Packagers have a really strong understanding of the specialist market
Delving deeper into Together’s survey results, 16% of FTBs said they’d look to take advantage of shared ownership in 2022, and we’re getting more enquiries from intermediaries for mortgages that support assisted purchases.
When these cases come in, we need to be open and flexible, and work with a lender with the criteria and product range broad enough to accommodate them, which is why we value our relationship with Together.
You could structure your initial conversations to identify potential barriers early on
But many borrowers, unfortunately, aren’t aware of lenders that can take a common-sense view of their circumstances. Almost a third of Brits have never heard of specialist lenders, and I think even some intermediaries aren’t fully aware of their capabilities. There’s a real opportunity here to educate the market.”
James Briggs continues:
“It’s brokers who hold the key to improving a borrower’s confidence in their finance options, which could be the difference between their property ambitions moving forward or going unfulfilled in 2022.
1. Broaden your horizons
There was a time when ‘specialist lender’ meant ‘impaired credit’.
And, while we can often lend to clients with a credit blip, it’s not the defining characteristic of Together’s customer base. Instead, many of our clients are self-employed or have complex income, or they are retiring and borrowing later in life.
There are more people we could help if they were referred to us sooner and I think the challenge stems from a lack of awareness
The specialist finance sector is home to more than flexible lending criteria. It provides a wide range of products that are vital to a broker’s toolkit. In such a fast-moving housing market, for example, bridging finance can offer an important short-term solution to a broken property chain.
Our common-sense approach to underwriting is fast and flexible enough to help such clients.
2. Front-load your conversations
We often hear of clients frustrated by delays because their circumstances mean they’ve been turned away by mainstream banks. But you could structure your initial conversations to identify potential barriers early on:
- Are they self-employed or a contractor?
- Do they have several income sources?
- Are they borrowing beyond traditional retirement age?
- Is there anything unusual about the property?
- Does it involve Right to Buy, shared ownership or gifted equity?
- Have they had any credit blips?
The more they say ‘Yes’ to, the more you should be thinking of talking to a specialist lender upfront.
Almost a third of Brits have never heard of specialist lenders, and I think even some intermediaries aren’t fully aware of their capabilities
3. Know your support network
At Together, we have a team of experienced BDMs around the UK who can talk to you about your clients’ circumstances and provide examples of cases we’ve been able to fund.
And you’ll be in safe hands with one of our experienced packager partners.”
Ian Balfour adds:
“Packagers have a really strong understanding of the specialist market and will be able to instantly source the most appropriate solution for your client.
Thanks to the strong partnerships we have with specialist lenders, brokers can have confidence a deal will be delivered quickly and efficiently, while they can still hold on to their relationship with their client.”
For professional intermediary use only.
*Results gathered from three surveys conducted by OnePoll in December 2021 on behalf of Together. Featuring 2,000 UK participants: 1,000 self-employed and 1,000 FTB.
Original Article
