Its first Broker Barometer – a quarterly survey to test the temperature of commercial mortgage brokers on everything from client confidence to popular product features – also saw 95% expressing confidence in the economy.
While brokers detect cautious optimism in the economy among their clients, it’s a different story when it comes to securing finance.
Almost 70% of brokers believe their clients are pessimistic about the chances of borrowing from high street banks. This contrasts with just 9% pessimism when it comes to borrowing from specialist lenders.
The Barometer also questioned brokers about their roles in the market – and the value placed on them by lenders and clients. The survey revealed that just 20% of brokers feel clients always understand the role they have to play in commercial mortgage deals.
Lenders are varied in their appreciation of brokers, according to the survey. More than 80% of brokers questioned believe specialist lenders ‘often’ or ‘always’ value their role in the process. Just 15% of brokers believe the same of high street lenders.
Karen Bennett, director of sales and marketing, commercial mortgages at Shawbrook Bank, said: “It has been really interesting to delve a little deeper into the thoughts and experiences of our broker partners.
“They are after all the real eyes and ears of the industry – speaking to clients and lenders every day and being the first to feel the effects of the shifts and changes in the market. It’s encouraging to see brokers’ confidence in the economy steadily growing, and as our distribution is through brokers alone we’ll continue to bang the drum to ensure clients are aware of the huge value brokers play in sourcing the full range of lending options available to them.”
