She brings 25 years of experience to her new role
Fintech mortgage lender Gen H has appointed Karen Appleton (pictured) as its new head of lending.
Appleton, who previously spent nine of her 25 working years at Skipton Building Society, will report to Gen H’s chief commercial officer Pete Dockar and take charge of the credit and lending function. Her role will involve leveraging her experience to enhance the lender’s mortgage offerings, particularly targeting first-time buyers.
During her tenure at Skipton, Appleton reduced underwriting service levels from 17 days to same-day turnarounds, it was stated. Her expertise in automation and data-driven processes is expected to play a crucial role in the advancement of Gen H’s proprietary application, underwriting, and servicing tools.
Since entering the lending market in 2020, Gen H has introduced several innovative products, including a revamped JBSP product, addressing maximum age limitations, and a lender-conveyancer pairing aimed at streamlining the homebuying process.
In recent weeks, the lender announced its collaboration with Experian Boost, enabling applicants with boosted scores to access mortgages that were previously unavailable to them or to secure better mortgage options. This initiative follows Gen H’s partnership with Google Cloud, which significantly reduced the time spent on income verification during underwriting from approximately 20 minutes per case to mere seconds.
“We’re beyond excited to welcome Karen to Gen H,” Dockar said. “Karen has a demonstrable track record for truly innovative thinking, and her expertise is precisely what Gen H needs as we continue to grow, develop new propositions, and help more people find their place on the property ladder.”
Commenting on her appointment, Appleton said she was delighted to be joining a team that is passionate about creating positive outcomes for real people and intent on transforming the housing market.
“Having come from a credit risk background, I have always embraced opportunities to collaborate with brokers and other partners across the industry so we can build a real-life lending culture that meets the needs of customers across the mortgage application value chain,” she added. “I know that this passion of mine will be well placed with Gen H, and I’m very much looking forward to getting started.”
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