It is unlikely that any technology will ever completely take away the need for human interaction
Toni Smith is sales operations director at First Complete
At the last estimate brokers accounted for almost 70% of all new lending, and this is predicted to reach 75% by the end of the year, the question is, for how long will this trend continue?
There are those who are already predicting that it would be wise for brokers to capitalise on the market in the next couple of years as by then the balance will start to shift back to lenders wanting to go directly to customers.
If that were to happen, the way that it is likely to be possible would be through technology. At the moment lender technology is in its infancy but, as the rapid take up in direct banking has proved, consumers are quick to switch to a technological option if it is available.
Lenders are already latching onto this and there seems to be a plethora of lenders rushing to invest in apps and other technological solutions to enable them, on the face of it, to deal directly with the borrower.
Of course some technology will also benefit brokers. Apps that are available for brokers to use as well as the client work well. They are excellent for case tracking, submitting copies of information and for real time updates on the next step, or as a prompt for any additional information required.
Some technology is also more successful than others of course. A nephew of mine when offered a version of Skype in a branch in order to receive mortgage advice on his first ever mortgage, left rapidly in need of the option of face-to-face advice in a room with a real person. And this brings me to the crux of it and is the reason that I don’t go along with the doomsayers; while technology will undoubtedly improve the experience of taking out a mortgage, I believe that only very few people will be happy to take out the biggest purchase of their lives completely remotely without ever seeing another human being.
Of course if it’s your fifth or sixth mortgage and you are completely comfortable with the process then you are likely to fall into the category where remote is fine. If it is your first or second mortgage and you need to be talked through all the options to fully understand what is available to you then you are still going to want to sit down opposite a real person who you can relate to.
In the same way that there was a backlash against bank branches closing, despite the fondness for digital banking, there will always be a need for a very good mortgage broker to understand someone’s circumstances and provide advice. No doubt the swing towards intermediated mortgages will swing back again at some time the same that it’s always done, but it is unlikely that any technology will ever completely take away the need for human interaction.
