We are lucky at BM to have access to the expertise of fantastic analysts who can show us the trends in the private rented sector and keep us up to date. So we’ve been well aware of the shift towards purchasing buy-to-let property in a limited company for some time.

But, while we knew there was demand, we needed to know exactly what brokers and landlords wanted from a limited company proposition.

What did they like about what was currently out there? Where were the pain points, and how could we offer something that minimised them?

We spent time talking to brokers, both informally through business development managers (BDMs) and at events, as well as conducting surveys. This feedback was invaluable, because brokers shared what worked, as well as the frustrations they face when placing limited company business.

We also spoke to landlords to see what they want from a limited company lender, so we could fine-tune our proposition and work out our positioning.

As a mass market buy-to-let lender, we’re focused on landlords entering the limited company sector for the first time, as well as those already in it with standard circumstances, rather than bespoke lending requirements.

We have been laser-focused on the process from decision in principle (DIP) to offer. Brokers using us for limited company lending need to have the same smooth experience they are used to with BM.

Our tech team built a process that draws in external data to make applications quicker for you, as well as highly accurate. You simply input the client’s company number, and our system will automatically pull in the details from Companies House and prepopulate the application forms.

This is one of many smart ways that technology is working behind the scenes to make submitting a case easy for the broker. It also allows us to give you an instant decision-in-principle that you can be confident in.

While we can’t give you a cast-iron guarantee, you can be certain that the DIP will move to offer, assuming it’s correctly keyed and we have no nasty surprises during underwriting.

We spent time building and testing our DIP technology with a group of 30 brokers. They gave us invaluable feedback, including constructive criticism about what was taking too long, where we were asking for too much information or where it could be done better.

We listened and adapted the process to streamline it as much as possible, taking out requirements for information that was not strictly necessary.

After months of work, we soft-launched the entire proposition to a limited group of brokers in July to test systems and processes before the rollout.

No matter how much research and internal testing you do, there are always things that are thrown up with a soft launch, which is why it’s essential.

It was important for us to see the reaction to the product and to see the process in action in the real world.

We got great feedback from brokers as well as some really useful suggestions, which have been taken on board. For example, we removed some of the data we asked for, to streamline applications, and improved messaging in other areas, so that brokers were clear on exactly what was required.

With any new product launch, the product team is central to the process, and our tech team have been heavily involved too. But lots of colleagues across the business have been part of this journey and worked hard to bring limited company lending to market.

This includes marketing, operations and sales as well as the product and tech teams. Our BDMs have undergone training on the new products and systems to make sure they can support brokers, plus we’ve put together a ring-fenced limited company team to deal exclusively with these applications.

We’ve all been driven by maintaining the speed, confidence of decision-making and functional tech that brokers already trust BM with. Limited company applications should feel easy, familiar and no more complex than standard.

Work doesn’t stop at the launch.

At BM, we never rest on our laurels, so we are proactively looking for feedback from brokers about our limited company proposition. We plan to keep making improvements as we learn more about what’s working for you and your clients and where we can do better.

We’ve taken the time to get it right with limited company lending, designing our process to be simple to use and deliver quick decisions you can have confidence in. Give it a try, give us some feedback, and we’ll keep on improving our products, service and processes.

For the use of mortgage intermediaries and other professionals only.

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