Britain's housing ladder is blocked – but brokers can help clear the way – Simpson

While the findings paint a concerning picture of housing access and affordability, I believe they also raise an important question for brokers: how can they help clients to navigate a market which has changed? The report shows that housing mobility has become increasingly difficult at every stage. However, brokers can help customers to understand their options, and many may be closer to buying or moving than they think.

Our research found that 88% of adults still see homeownership as important, yet only 11% of renters aged 20-44 in England are currently in a financial position to buy. The aspiration remains strong, but the path has become more complex.

This is not simply a first-time buyer issue; it affects clients throughout the housing lifecycle. From renters struggling to save for a deposit, to growing families unable to move up the ladder, and later life homeowners looking to downsize, housing mobility challenges are creating increasingly diverse advice needs.

This means that brokers are likely to see more customers who require support with affordability challenges, need specialist lending solutions, or have smaller deposits. There may be others who need to buy again due to a major life event or secure a mortgage on a smaller home later in life. With this as a backdrop, the role of a broker has never been more important.

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A changing market

Last year, we welcomed regulatory changes around loan-to-income (LTI) limits and mortgage stress testing, and indeed, Accord was among the first lenders to implement these changes. This has created opportunities for lenders to responsibly use greater flexibility for clients who may have assumed homeownership was beyond their reach – perhaps facing genuine affordability or credit constraints, or self-excluding because they misunderstand what is possible. The broker plays an invaluable role here, helping clients to test their assumptions, navigate criteria, and understand any historical adverse credit they may have.

We launched our innovative £5k Deposit Mortgage to address one of the most significant barriers to homeownership: raising a deposit. This product has since helped more than 2,500 first-time buyers to purchase a home, having been expanded to include flats – enabling people to access a home worth up to £500,000 with only £5,000 to put down initially.

This, alongside common-sense lending, allows us to help more people, but we recognise that products alone will not solve the housing crisis. However, they do demonstrate how thinking differently in this space can help to address some of the barriers brokers encounter every day, and actually, for a significant number of borrowers, the perception that they cannot buy or move, may not actually be true.

This is where I believe advisers can play a key role – by staying close to product development, regulatory change and lender criteria, in order to spot new opportunities for clients who may previously have believed they were excluded from the market.

Advice that spans the housing journey

Our report highlights an important shift in the advice landscape. While first-time buyers remain a key focus, brokers are increasingly needed to support customers across all stages of the housing journey, because doing that improves accessibility for everyone.

That means helping clients understand their options earlier, identifying suitable lending solutions for those with affordability challenges, and supporting homeowners who want to move, remortgage or adapt their housing arrangements as circumstances change.

Brokers also have an important role in challenging assumptions. Many aspiring buyers still believe that large deposits or the strongest credit history are essential requirements for homeownership. By helping clients understand the products and pathways that are realistically available to them, intermediaries can help turn aspiration into action.

Collaboration is needed

The housing ladder cannot be repaired by any single organisation. Policymakers, lenders, builders and regulators all have a role to play. But brokers sit on the frontline – seeing first-hand the barriers their clients face and the support they need.

As housing journeys become more complex, the role of brokers has never been more important. The challenge they face is how they can help clients secure a mortgage today, as well as to progress, as their needs evolve over time.

We sincerely hope that the blueprint set out in our No Way Home? report will catalyse further industry change that will ensure more options for all borrowers through innovation, collaboration and policy reform.

For brokers, the opportunity is clear: to challenge assumptions, stay close to changing criteria and product innovation, and encourage clients to revisit their options. By helping clients to understand those opportunities, they can play a vital role in getting Britain’s housing ladder moving again.