Q: What will lenders be doing to help mortgage intermediaries prepare for MMR?
A: The advent of MMR on 26 April 2014 heralds a new world for the industry and comes 10 years after M-Day, when the industry last underwent significant regulatory reform.
We’ve seen first hand the changes that the IFA world has undergone as a result of RDR and the question of what lenders will be doing to help mortgage intermediaries prepare for MMR is a valid one.
From our perspective at Abbey for Intermediaries, we’ll be doing everything we can to ensure intermediaries have all the information they need ahead of next April and we’re already talking with our Key Account partners about how the changes that are being introduced will impact on how they do business with us.
Our sales force will also be busy supporting and educating intermediaries on what the changes mean for them, and we’ll be listening closely to their feedback to ensure we can offer the support they need.
One good example of how the changes will impact the market is that in the post MMR world, it will be the lender’s responsibility to assess affordability in all cases.
A key focus for lenders will therefore be working closely with intermediaries to ensure the required information about the borrower is provided and the migration to the new regulatory regime is as seamless as possible.
The launch of our new affordability calculator in January was designed to support this transition. As well as highlighting important areas of lending policy based on the client’s circumstances, the affordability calculator creates a tailored checklist of evidence required from the client.
Intermediaries are able to save this and share it with the client, allowing them to bring all of the information required to their next meeting and helping to speed up the offer process. Such upfront tools will allow lenders to work more closely with intermediaries to better meet the needs of the borrower.
Quality took on an ever more important role across the industry in 2012 and we worked very closely with our Key Account partners to drive this agenda forward. It’s clear that quality will become even more key in the post MMR world, particularly in sectors such as interest-only lending and lending into retirement.
Good packaging is integral to quality business and a successful case outcome and lenders will be working closely with intermediaries over the coming months to ensure they have the tools they need to submit cases that fit the lender’s criteria, the application form is completed in full, and the right documentation is used to evidence income.
The mortgage industry has evolved significantly since M-Day and as we prepare for the implementation of MMR next April, we will be working hard to support our intermediary partners though these latest changes.
