“Computer Says No”: Turn Complex Mortgages into Approvals

Those households who’ve missed mortgage payments could find themselves moving into the adverse credit category of borrowers, which historically has made securing a mortgage or remortgage tricky. But with 7.9 million adults in the UK now considered to have adverse credit, according to a Pepper Money study, there’s a real opportunity for brokers and lenders to support such borrowers and find them a solution.

The Rise of Adverse Credit and Complex Mortgage Cases

Adverse credit isn’t just about missed payments or CCJs. It covers a whole spectrum, from self-employed borrowers and short-term contractors to people with more serious financial blips like IVAs or bankruptcies. Traditional high street lenders often aren’t keen to help. Thankfully, there’s a whole range of specialist lenders on the market who’ve recognised that there is an opportunity here and they’re stepping up with solutions that don’t come with a “computer says no” response.

For example, did you know that a quick search on a platform like Criteria Brain can uncover over 64 lenders willing to consider cases with defaults registered in the last two years? That’s 64 potential solutions you might not have spotted otherwise. This is where mortgage technology is key to helping brokers find exactly the right lender and product.

For a free 30-day trial of Criteria Brain click here.

Mortgage Criteria Systems Are Indispensable

Trying to keep track of every lender’s changing mortgage criteria manually is next to impossible. Criteria systems like Criteria Brain are designed to make your search easier. They do the heavy lifting, so you don’t have to. Here’s how Criteria Brain can help:

• Updated twice daily: Criteria Brain is updated with new product details twice a day.
• Quick and efficient: a couple of clicks, and within seconds you’ve got a list of lenders who might say “yes” to your client.
• Save time: precious hours that you would have spent talking to lenders can now be focused on building relationships with your clients.
• Reduced admin: client fact find information that you’ve already completed in Sourcing Brain or CRM Brain is automatically completed in Criteria Brain, so no need for manual rekeying again and again.

Lenders are also seeing the benefits. Take Leeds Building Society, for example. They’ve fully integrated Criteria Brain into their website which means that any mortgage criteria updates they make to their systems is automatically updated on Criteria Brain, making it even easier and speedier for brokers.

Empathy is Vital in Getting Clients the Best Results

Let’s not forget that behind every complex case is a person or household who’s probably feeling under stress. They may have been turned down by a number of lenders already and they’re concerned about keeping their home or business. Brokers can play an incredible role in turning this around and giving such borrowers a lifeline. Consumer Duty regulations mean that brokers are in a unique position to sit down with clients, understand their story, and reassure them that adverse credit doesn’t mean the end of the road. A search on Criteria Brain can provide them with workable options and even help them improve their credit score over time. You’ll likely secure a client for life too.

Explore Alternative Mortgage Solutions

Specialist lenders aren’t just there for adverse credit. A report by Together and IMLA forecasts that specialist or complex mortgage lending will swell by 70% from £32bn to £54bn over the next five years, driven by lenders adapting mortgage products to cater to the changing needs of work and family relationships. Specialist lenders have identified a growing market for:

• Shared ownership for those who can’t afford a property on their own.
• Retirement mortgages to meet an ageing population working later in life.
• Self-build for those building a home
• Self-employed mortgages for those with unconventional or multiple income streams.
• High LTV products for first-time buyers struggling with deposits.

Platforms like Criteria Brain and Sourcing Brain let brokers tailor their searches to these niche needs, making it quicker and easier to match clients with the right products.

For a 30-day free trial of Sourcing Brain, click here.

Let Mortgage Technology Do the Hard Work

Finding the right lender for complex cases can be a time drain, especially when product rates and mortgage criteria are regularly changing. This is where tools like Criteria Brain and Sourcing Brain come into their own. They’re designed to work smarter, not harder, for brokers; reducing admin, manual rekeying, helping brokers to make informed decisions, and getting it right first time early on in the application process, all of which serves to build better relationships with borrowers and could lead to a client for life. Some of the key benefits of Criteria Brain and Mortgage Brain’s mortgage technology include:

• Fully integrated solutions, combining affordability calculators, mortgage criteria searches, and valuation tools into one system.
• Adverse credit filters, where brokers can quickly search for lenders based on CCJs, defaults, or missed payments.
• Saves time on admin, so you can focus on advising your clients.

Tackle the Toughest Criteria Cases with Mortgage Brain

Adverse credit cases aren’t going away anytime soon, which provides an important opportunity for brokers to showcase their expertise, empathy, and problem-solving skills in combination with the power of mortgage technology. By using a system like Criteria Brain, brokers can turn “computer says no” into “let’s make this work.”

So, whether it’s helping someone with a tricky credit history or finding first time buyer product for someone who’s self-employed, the tools and opportunities are there. All it takes is a willingness to tap into the tech and let it do the hard work for you.

If you’d like to know more about how Criteria Brain can help you with complex cases, get in touch.