With the recent war of words between GMAC-RFC and BM Solutions over who is the best lender, Mortgage Introducer - News has decided to pitch the lenders against each other in a ‘Boxing Bout’. Fighting in the red corner we have BM Solutions, and in the blue corner GMAC-RFC.
Below we have outlined each lenders’ vital statistics. The lenders will then ‘battle it out’ in five rounds where they will be rated by our broker ‘judges’ under specific categories.
Round 1: Products
John Stewart, PMI: “BM. Its self-cert and buy-to-let deals are good.”
Mike Fitzgerald, Brentchase Financial Services: “GMAC. For the sheer size of its range.”
Kevin Morgan, Consilium: “BM. Has a wider range of deals.”
Roy New, sole broker: “Both are good but GMAC has more variation in its deals.”
Simon Chalk, Mortgage Portfolio Services: “GMAC’s are more aggressively priced.”
Trevor Youens, Flower IFA: “Overall, GMAC. We just see BM as a buy-to-let lender.”
David Hollingworth, London & County: “Currently GMAC generally offers the sharper rates.”
WINNER: GMAC-RFC
Round 2: Service
Stewart: “GMAC. BM’s service is not up to scratch.”
Fitzgerald: “Overall, GMAC edge it.”
Morgan: “GMAC. BM are much worse.”
New: “BM. Just does what it says it’s going to do.”
Chalk: “Both are good, but GMAC have the edge.”
Youens: “GMAC. BM asks too many questions.”
Hollingworth: “A draw. Both are generally speedy with slick online operation.”
WINNER: GMAC-RFC
Round 3: Online capabilities
Stewart: “GMAC. It’s user-friendly.”
Fitzgerald: “BM for its speed and online simplicity.”
Morgan: “BM’s online service is more efficient.”
New: “BM win by a mile.
Chalk: “BM are consistently good with its online service.”
Youens: “BM hands down.”
Hollingworth: “Both highly capable systems with quick AIP facilities. Too close to call.”
WINNER: BM Solutions
Round 4: Proc fees
Stewart: “GMAC pips the post again.”
Fitzgerald: “It has to be a draw.”
Morgan: “BM pay slightly more.”
New: “They’re very similar but GMAC pays slightly higher fees for its non-conforming.”
Chalk: “It’s close, but it has to go to GMAC.”
Youens: “GMAC’s are higher.”
Hollingworth: “GMAC. Higher proc fees are obviously only any good if matched with good products, which they are.”
WINNER: GMAC-RFC
Round 5: Marketing
Stewart: “BM. We liked its girls in the short red skirts at the last Mortgage Expo.”
Fitzgerald: “GMAC. It has made a bigger step to declare its presence in the market.”
Morgan: “BM. It pushes its products more.”
New: “BM. It spends more money on its marketing.
Chalk: “I prefer GMAC. It’s less confrontational and aggressive.”
Youens: “BM wins for me in this round.”
Hollingworth: “A draw. Both have excellent marketing and PR, otherwise we wouldn’t be talking about them now.”
WINNER: BM Solutions
Match commentary:
This was a close match. BM Solutions hit some blinding punches in round three and its use of aggressive marketing made sure it triumphed in round five. But this was not enough to deter GMAC’s performance, thanks to its wide range of products, efficient service and competitive non-conforming proc fees.
Post-bout interviews
Jeff Knight, head of marketing services at GMAC-RFC, said: “Our product range delivers real punch and is good news for intermediaries and for borrowers. We will simply continue to stick to doing what we do best – offering mortgages through a fast and automated system that provides binding decisions and let the competition worry about us.”
Matt Grayson, head of public relations at BM Solutions, said: “The last time I've been more shocked was when San Marino scored first against England in the World Cup qualifiers. Of course England went on to win by several goals to 1. Seriously, we're the biggest online sub-prime lender in the UK - and over twice the size of our nearest competitor for a reason. The reason is that the vast majority of brokers choose to do business with BM Solutions. When judging our performance we prefer to source the views of a wide-cross section of the market.”
Who wants it?
Are there any other lenders out there who you think should take part in the next Mortgage Introducer-sponsored ‘Boxing Bout’? The next challenger will take on GMAC-RFC. Maybe you’re a lender who would like to throw a few punches with another mortgage provider to decide which is the true champion? Or are you a broker or packager who fancies your chances against one of your competitors in the boxing ring?
If so, e-mail Dippy Singh at [email protected] or call 020 7827 5492.
