The Council of Mortgage Lenders has published loan applications data for the first time and revealed its members can also access performance data on broker firms, including how much business they do, how quickly they do it, and the different types of mortgage applications they are dealing with.
A spokesman for the CML said: “It allows lenders to dissect business volumes and characteristics from individual broker firms and direct channels, and by loan types, affordability metrics, geographical regions and in many other ways.
“In short, the new database provides lenders with a forward-looking view of their pipeline business that can be tailored to give all sorts of insights.”
Some 5 per cent of loan applications submitted directly to lenders were completed in fewer than 30 days, while among broker firms the proportion of business completed to the same timescale varied significantly.
Over a more typical completion timescale of 90 days, differences between broker firms were less pronounced and tended to be closer to the average of 63 per cent of mortgages that are processed directly by the lender within that period. But even over this timescale, some broker firms had a materially higher completion rate.
Both Santander and Halifax already link procuration fees to the quality of business submitted by intermediaries.
The CML said: “While this data offers members valuable sales insight and helps them plan commercial strategy, it also provides insights into the wider market.”
The statistics also break down mortgage application times, showing in the 12 months to June 2013 regulated mortgage applications took an average of 72 days to complete.
Applications for remortgaging were significantly faster at 59 days on average. First-time buyer loans, meanwhile, spent 81 days in the pipeline before completion.
Adviser view
Robert Sinclair, chief executive of Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, said: “Any data like this will be interesting for lenders to benchmark themselves against, but it will really come into its own when it has been running for a while.
“This is also going to allow lenders to compare their performance times on both the direct and intermediary channels, particularly in light of the mortgage market review landing next month.”
Key statistics
72 days - average time to complete a regulated mortgage application
59 days - average to complete a remortgage
81 days - average time to complete a first-time buyer loan
121 days - average time to complete a right to buy transaction
