Faster rate pulls demand better broker systems, says industry veteran

Mortgage products are being pulled faster than at almost any point on record, and brokers who lack the right systems and processes are putting their clients at risk.

That is the view of Paul Hampton (pictured top), owner and mortgage consultant at Approved Mortgage Solutions. His comments come in response to figures from Moneyfacts showing average mortgage product shelf life fell to just 13 days in September, down from 14 in August and well below the 43-day norm recorded in 2019.

The pace of lender repricing has reshaped the rhythm of the working day for brokers across the country, but Hampton believes the shift has been gradual enough that many in the industry have adapted without fully acknowledging the scale of the change.

"It's something that you've seen happen over a period of time," he told Mortgage Introducer. "Swap rates are a lot more volatile than they have been. Lenders are having to react to swap rate changes, and they're very, very volatile at the minute."

Hampton also pointed to technology as a key driver of the acceleration. Where repricing once required a lender to give three or four days' notice and could take a day and a half to execute, that is no longer the case. "With computers and AI now, it's much easier for them to reprice a product, withdraw one and put a new one out," he said.

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Monitoring emails and managing pipelines

Hampton's firm has built a clear internal process to respond when a lender announces a withdrawal. All advisers are signed up to lender email alerts, and when a rate change notice arrives, it is immediately cross-referenced against live cases. A member of the back-office team checks all clients who hold products with the relevant lender.

"We use as much of the systems as we possibly can, but it's not foolproof," he said. "You're relying on brokers being aware of what they've got on the desk. You're aware of the administrators using systems with reasonable usability, but not perfect systems. And you're also relying on clients as well."

The process avoids placing undue pressure on clients until a lender has confirmed a change. Hampton described forwarding the lender's email directly to the client – being transparent about what is happening without manufacturing urgency.

He pointed to Nationwide as one example of a lender whose process works well in this environment, noting that brokers can secure a product after a decision in principle rather than requiring a full application first. Swap rate volatility has been a recurring theme across the market this year, with lenders repricing repeatedly in response to movements tied to global uncertainty.

"It would be much easier if a lender allowed you to secure a rate after DIP and not after full application," he said. "You've got less pressure on brokers, and you've got less pressure on the clients as well."

Advice for less experienced advisers

Newer entrants to the industry should build their approach around process rather than instinct, Hampton said. He recommends stepping back from the day-to-day and designing a clear, logical workflow that accounts for what happens when lender emails arrive, using CRM subcategories to flag cases where a product has been recommended but an application has not yet been submitted.

"I would say for a younger, less experienced adviser, step back, write a logical process of what you should be doing so that your clients don't miss out," he said. "Have a look at what your systems do. See what system usage you can utilise, and what you can't. A manual spreadsheet works."

Hampton was candid about the realities of working in a market defined by sudden product withdrawals. Brokers working late to submit applications ahead of rate deadlines is nothing new, he argued, and it comes with the territory of self-employment in a commission-based profession. "As a self-employed broker, which covers probably the vast majority of the industry, you've got to put the hours in," he said. "If you don't, your clients will see through you eventually."

The case for using a broker

Hampton is unequivocal on the value brokers provide in this environment. Moneyfacts has warned that borrowers now have less time than at any point on record to find, compare and secure a competitive deal, and attempting to navigate that without professional help carries significant risk, Hampton argues. Product availability has grown even as deals churn faster, with the total count reaching 8,696 in October, up from 6,201 in April, according to Moneyfacts.

Hampton pointed to a client he was due to speak with. A borrower who had gone directly to a lender, obtained an agreement in principle, and instructed a builder – only to find the full application came back £20,000 short because the stress test differed for the shorter fixed-rate term she had chosen. She had also independently identified what she believed was the cheapest rate available, unaware it was a discount product – a type she did not want following a change in personal circumstances.

"Even a poor broker will be better than going directly to a lender or trying to do it yourself," Hampton said. "It's not a job you should try to do yourself."

Moneyfacts urged anyone approaching the end of a fixed-rate deal to start their search early, noting that many lenders allow borrowers to secure a new deal three to six months in advance – guidance that aligns with the approach Hampton's firm already takes.

The real complexity, he noted, often lies in the gap between when a client can access a product transfer and when a remortgage offer becomes the more practical route. Technology has made it easier for lenders to reprice at speed, but the same tools are yet to fully ease the administrative burden on brokers managing multiple cases simultaneously.