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Contractor and furlough mortgages hot topics as Primis desk sees record call numbers

Guest Author:
Alexandra WatsonPrimis Mortgage Network received a record number of enquiries from Appointed Representatives (ARs) in March with questions about self-employed and furloughed workers dominating mortgage application queries.
The product desk received 2,823 calls last month compared to an average of 2,083 broker queries a month in 2020.
The most common questions from brokers involved lending for contractors, furloughed borrowers, buy-to-let purchases for first-time buyers and non-homeowners, as well as product options for regulated and limited company buy-to-let investors.
The pandemic has continued to affect the rate of mortgage applications. In January, Primis reported an 18 per cent rise in adviser enquiries relating to poor credit, income protection and furloughed income.
Last month, the nature of enquiries were slightly different with a bigger focus on the self-employed as well as borrowers on full or partial furlough. Furthermore, brokers have seen a spike in mortgage queries from first-time landlords.

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Vikki Jefferies, (pictured), proposition director at Primis, said: “Today’s figures show just how crucial Primis’ product desk is, not only for supporting brokers with client queries, but also educating them on key themes in the mortgage market so they can grow their confidence in these areas.
“It is really encouraging to see that advisers were using the product desk throughout March to support them with both new and ongoing queries, and then showcasing their learnings in conversations with clients.
“Ensuring that operational processes are running efficiently will deliver significant benefits for brokers’ businesses, so I’d encourage the adviser community to take advantage of the resources available to enhance their business and support their client work going forwards.”