"Changes to our affordability criteria and policy improvements mean we can offer more mortgages more quickly to a wider range of customers"
The lender has reported that the time it takes a broker to receive an agreement in principle now averages under an hour, a reduction of three hours since May.
Additionally, 94% of AIPs are now processed on the same day they are submitted - an increase of 53% from March.
Straight-through AIP acceptance rates have doubled (50%) since April with the number of AIPs being referred for further assessment dropping by 23% (32%). Since changes were made to its affordability criteria in April the average amount Accord lends has also increased by 12%.
Accord has now reduced its application to offer time by five days year-on-year from July 2015 to July 2016.
Charles Canning, Managing Director at Accord, said: “We want to help borrowers as much as we can, and changes to our affordability criteria and policy improvements mean we can offer more mortgages more quickly to a wider range of customers, and responsibly lend larger loans to some borrowers.
“We believe that it is important to take a common sense approach to lending and we will continue to assess each application thoroughly. The changes have been carefully considered, and while Accord aims to take a more pragmatic view of borrower spending, as a responsible lender it will continue to ensure customers will comfortably afford their monthly repayments.
“We are constantly reviewing how we can improve our service to brokers. We hope our faster turnaround times and increased mortgage acceptance rates will assist intermediaries to meet their clients’ needs.”
