While more than half of mortgage brokers have opted for direct authorisation under Financial Services Authority (FSA) regulation, many remain undecided on what lender panel they will use.
According to a survey by The Mortgage Business (TMB), 45% of brokers are set to choose appointed representative (AR) status. Of the 55% who will become directly authorised 30% are unsure of what panel to use.
The majority of those becoming directly authorised will be taking on ARs – 63% intend to sign up to 25 ARs, 27% between 26 and 100, and only 11% more than 100. And while 79% of brokers intend to solve compliance issues through a central desk or a sourcing system, only 13% intend to visit ARs.
Bill Dudgeon, managing director of The Mortgage Business (TMB), said: “Compliance would appear to be an issue for brokers probably because it can be time consuming and a lengthy process. However, it is interesting that there is an almost 50/50 split between becoming authorised and appointed.”
A similar report from Networkone found 47% of brokers intend to be responsible for their own compliance – nearly a third will use an in-house compliance officer, 17% will use a third party, with the rest undecided. As regards costs, 40% have so far spent over £1,000 on future regulation, with 12% spending over £10,000.