As with most other industries the mortgage world has seen many technology driven changes over recent years. It is something that we constantly monitor to improve our own proposition.
Up until now there has been no real “Uber” moment which has turned the market on its head, with so called disruptive technologies finding it difficult to account for the many weird and wonderful requirements of lenders across the market. A couple of recent launches have sought to provide “advice” by way of a decision tree system, but in reality each individual’s circumstances vary hugely, so matching these to a disparate lending market is a huge task. Consequently, most of these new offerings require some kind of human touch to complete the process. We can foresee a position in the near term where certain segments of the mortgage market with very straight forward circumstances and requirements (do they really exist?) may be able to utilise an online portal.
However, having delivered a mortgage in principle through this route what happens when something changes or goes wrong, who speaks with the lender, estate agent, solicitor, the valuer, accountant, damp proof, wall tie or electrics specialist to ensure that the purchase actually completes?
Can a remote presence with whom you have no personal relationship provide a calming influence or shoulder to cry on to get one of the most important purchases anyone ever experiences over the line? As ever a one size fits all policy can cause issues and a human intervention, negotiation or even a shoulder to cry on/sounding board for possible solutions will often be required. All of that said, we would certainly promote carrying out some form of initial research online in order to determine which mortgage broker to use. Online tools, such as reading google reviews of previous client experiences can be very useful in narrowing down the options so that the person you engage with is the right person for you.
Technology certainly has its place and makes all of our day to day lives easier – in our own business we are constantly seeking to use new tools to publicise our services up front via our website, seeking out client testimonials and reviews to demonstrate our competency and overall user experience, whilst also streamlining our back office services. However, with an in-depth knowledge of each lenders’ “quirks” a professional mortgage advisor can help you avoid the disappointment and stress of a rejected application.
We feel that you will be stuck with the greying mortgage geeks for some time yet!
If you would like to see what our clients have to say about us we have in excess of 240 Google 5* reviews on-line and on our website from satisfied clients. www.innovateml.co.uk
