Free valuations - applies to all products (except buy to let). This was originally launched in the Spring of 2005 and has proven extremely popular with brokers throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Unlike a number of other free valuation schemes which require borrowers to pay for valuations up-front and which then refund the fee only if the case completes, Mortgages plc’s offer is genuinely ‘free’ – no payment is required from the borrower.
The free valuations scheme will continue to be:
-Available on all discounted and fixed rate products (except buy to let)
-Available on cases submitted on a direct basis only
- Available for purchase and remortgage
- Available via Wolton Chartered Surveyors and Shepherd Chartered Surveyors
- Available in England, Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland
- Limited to one per application/property and only available for a standard mortgage valuation report
All valuations must be instructed by Mortgages plc and retypes, if transferring to other lenders, will be charged on the valuer’s full standard fee scale.
Conveyancing On Demand - enables any intermediary who is registered to use Mortgages plc’s online system to search for, instruct and track the progress of any one of 150 conveyancers located throughout the country.
The system also gives brokers access to preferential pricing deals in which they can earn £200 in commission when they instruct a surveyor for sale and purchase. The system has an ebay style approach in which conveyancers are ranked by price, location and previous user ratings and is both fast and easy to use. All users will be provided with a free telephone based training session to get them up and running.
Peter Beaumont, sales & marketing director at Mortgages plc, says: “We’re delighted to be making these two excellent facilities available to brokers throughout 2006.
“Free valuation schemes have become a popular feature of the intermediary mortgage market, but not all schemes are the same. Unlike many other lenders, Mortgages plc does not require the borrower to part with any cash to pay for their valuation, it is a genuinely free offer – a facility which we are proud to have pioneered.
“Instructing conveyancers is not only a way for brokers to provide their clients with an unexpected value added service, but it is also a way to significantly boost earnings per mortgage completion. The system takes very little time and if brokers can use ebay, they’ll have no problems using Conveyancing On Demand.”
