Richard Hearn, managing director at All Types of Mortgages (AToM), argued packagers who did not adjust their offering would lose out when AVMs enter the marketplace. He said: “Packagers could see AVMs as a threat or as an opportunity. The larger packagers will see it as an opportunity, but the smaller organisations might see AVMs as a threat because it means it could be quicker to deal with the lender direct rather than through a packager. Packagers will have to adapt new ways of doing business in the developing market, possibly developing new strategies and enhancing their proposition and offer.”
James Cotton, mortgage specialist at London & Country, said: “There has been a few initiatives launched into the market that have led to speculation about the future of packagers. However packagers have survived and the good ones have found ways to continue.”
Simon Mouncher, operations director at em-, said the packager was planning for AVMs. He said: “At em- we see the introduction of automated desktop valuations as providing an opportunity for packagers only where the packager has a fully integrated relationship, from a technological and system perspective, with its branded lending partners. Benefits of an improved service from the packager to its distribution base can only be a positive, however it remains to be seen whether there is currently sufficient data available to truly help the core sectors of the non-conforming market.
“We are currently working hard with several of the leading non-conforming lenders to ensure we maximise all potential benefits of automated desktop valuations on behalf of our customer base.”
