The lender had previously restricted the facility to its adverse range but the move is aimed at helping brokers to place cases more easily, without having to worry whether the case is prime or non-conforming.
Linda Will, managing director at Accord, said: “It is often the case that both the broker and the client won’t know exactly which category the case will fit in but by looking at the credit history of the client, we can say whether or not they will fit into a specific category without the need for repeating applications.
“A lot of firms who use cascade systems restrict themselves to non-conforming and they lack the capacity to expand this as they don’t have a prime range. However, it’s all about making brokers’ lives easier and we think this will help.”
Accord has pointed to a cascade system’s speed at determining a client’s position, especially when they are on the borderline between categories, as a significant advantage.
Will believed this would be of particular use when a client was borderline between prime and near-prime – a factor behind the extension.
Jason Richardson, director of YooToo Financial Services, said: “It won’t be particulary useful in the prime market as you would use Mortgage Brain or Trigold. However, on the non-conforming side it is useful as it makes things easier and there is less influence on rates and more on individual circumstances. If the client is borderline and doesn’t realise a couple of missed credit card payments count as a default then you can cascade to see if they’re prime or near-prime but much of the time it’s not hugely relevant.”
