Specialist broker positivity at ‘all time high’ – Masthaven

According to a survey of 217 specialist brokers conducted by Masthaven, 77 per cent said they were confident about the market’s overall prospects in 2020 – a 26 per cent increase on those who said the same in 2018.  

This is in spite of the 44 per cent of advisers who believe Brexit will be the biggest barrier to growth in the market this year and the 21 per cent who feel lending criteria will hinder business. 

Some 82 per cent of respondents said they expected to see revenues rise in the coming year, with most predicting growth to be in double figures. Of those expecting growth, 26 per cent expect their revenues to surge by more than a fifth.  

Additionally, 12 per cent of brokers were positive about second charge finance prospects.

Year in review 

As for how the previous year fared, 23 per cent said remortgage activity was the area that saw the most growth in 2019, attributed to potential sellers choosing to wait out the uncertainty in the market and improve or extend their existing homes instead.  

The second biggest growth area last year was later life lending at 18 per cent, followed by bridging at 13 per cent.  

Rob Barnard (pictured), director of intermediaries at Masthaven, said: “Advisers have proved to be resilient to the pessimism and anxiety that’s characterised so much of the discussion over the last three years. We can attribute this confidence to the strong relationships between lenders and brokers.  

“Good lenders have been listening to broker feedback about the market and customer needs and have reflected this in their products and rates – meaning brokers can serve their clients with diversified products while boosting revenues.   

He added: “Knowing these brokers are optimistic about the year ahead should fill both lenders and customers with confidence in the market and maintain the high expectations which the specialist market continues to deliver on, year after year.”