How to source the best deal and quickly

Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, says: “The broker will undertake a detailed fact find ascertaining what is important to the individual.”

He says this includes but is not limited to:

• the type of mortgage – fixed or variable;

• conventional repayment or with the ability to offset using savings and or current account;

• attitude to changes in interest rates and how this may impact on disposable income; and

• whether the client is prepared to pay arrangement fees or not and the impact this may have on rates.

Jonathan Clark, mortgage partner at Chadney Bulgin, stresses that advisers should be using a ‘whole of market’ sourcing system that is updated daily and should not forget some of the smaller building societies as they are capturing an increased share of the FTB market.

Mr Murphy maintains brokers should ascertain with the client other less tangible areas, such as whether it is important that a mortgage offer is produced within a defined timescale, for example to facilitate exchange of contracts on a new home where the builder has set a short window to conclude the sale.

“If the client has irregular income but a proven employment track record, it may mean the broker recommending a particular lender over another due to the more human approach that some lenders still operate versus the high volume automated credit score decision making that many of the high street brands utilise.”

Most lenders operate an online ‘decision in principle’ system offering binding decisions within minutes.

Mr Clark adds: “FTB cases will tend to have a higher level of scrutiny but despite this, delays are rare. Encourage your client to obtain a mortgage approval before they view properties, it will put them in a much better negotiating position with the estate agents.”

Although some lenders struggle with the volume of applications from time to time due to having particularly attractive rates that drive surges in application volumes, which can cause delays, any good broker will know who is turning round applications to offers in what timescale.

Timeframes can be particularly important for NewBuy property purchasers who are facing pressure from builders to turn round a sale and exchange contracts quickly, advises Mr Murphy.

Brokers need to be fully au fait with each lenders application procedures and will therefore know what supporting documentation requirements are needed for any given situation, making sure applications are correctly completed and all necessary documents are packaged and available for the lenders when needed.