The new brokers joining the pilot are The Mortgage Partnership, Active Mortgage Management and Glasgow-based Moneyquest. Brokers already taking part in the pilot include John Charcol and appointed representatives of Legal & General and Pink Home Loans.
Linda Will, managing director of Accord, said: “By adding these new brokers we should get more detailed feedback and cover a wider geographical area. We already have a close relationship with these brokers on the prime side of our business and now we want to extend this. We want to make sure we get everything right before we launch later in the year.”
Mortgage Introducer exclusively revealed back in April that Accord would be entering the non-conforming market.
Accord is in the process of developing its own online decisioning mechanism and ruled out the use of packagers as its sole route to the non-conforming market. The lender has also ruled out entry into the buy-to-let market within the foreseeable future.
Kevin Morgan, director of Consilium Financial Planning, said it was wise for lenders to test the non-conforming market before jumping feet first into it. “This sector of the market is constantly evolving and changing, so it is always a good idea to make sure you have road tested your strategy and the products.
“There is a lot of potential in non-conforming and any initiative that brings greater choice to consumers is a welcome one.”
