"As an adviser it’s vital that we ask the right questions, however simple they may appear, even at the risk of looking a little foolish or patronising on occasions."
As an adviser it’s vital that we ask the right questions, however simple they may appear, even at the risk of looking a little foolish or patronising on occasions. And why am I currently on this train of thought I hear you ask?
Well, it stems from some responses recently collated by comparethemarket.com around the UK’s most searched for mortgage questions. I would be intrigued to hear what first springs to mind from an adviser viewpoint on this. I expect we would hear a multitude of answers, but it came as no huge surprise to read that ‘how long does a mortgage application take?’ topped this poll with over 20,000 annual searches.
Now, hands up if you agree.
‘How long does a mortgage offer last?’ came in second with 17,480 searches. Other top searches were ‘how to get a mortgage with bad credit?’ at 14,800, ‘what is an interest only mortgage?’ at 14,360, and ‘what is a lifetime mortgage?’ at 14,250. Looking at bridging loans, the top search was noted as being ‘what is APR?’ with 73,700 searches. ‘What is a bridging loan?’ followed with 23,500 searches, and ‘what is a bounce-back loan?’ with 20,510 searches.
The application process is an interesting one, as is the focus on more specialist mortgage requests. As I’m sure any adviser will agree, we’re always being asked, and asking the lender the question, how long an offer will take, especially in recent times. Technology is helping to speed up this process but some lenders still have antiquated systems that are struggling to get in line with the modern-day requirements. In fairness, many of these lenders recognise this and are investing heavily to improve the application process but when working with legacy systems, quick fixes are few and far between. In addition, systems, tools and solutions are also helping advisers to better interact with their clients and help collate a raft of information from a variety of sources.
Turning to the specialist markets, I expect the questions raised above to become even more prominent over the course of 2021 as increased layers of complexity – in terms of bounce-back loans, furlough, credit related issues and mortgage payment holidays – will continue to affect lending decisions, criteria and policy moving forward.
The job of the adviser is certainly not getting any easier. However, all types of borrowers need us more than ever and there is no question that the value of the advice process has never been more apparent.
