From doom and gloom to dialogue: why innovation and broker advice matter more than ever
The latest Index underlines that there’s no one actor who can solve these pressing issues. It demands collaboration across stakeholders, from lenders to government, with the Index suggesting an industry-wide working group.
Focusing on the real change lenders can drive, innovation can’t sit with one provider. Other lenders, including some of the Big Six, are entering the higher LTV space, for example. This is an expansion Adams welcomes, as more contemporaries realise that Skipton could have the right idea.
“The nice thing for me is we’re seen as a lender on the frontlines, tackling a lot of this,” he says. “Brokers may not have used one of our propositions before, but there’s a sense that we’re willing to do things slightly differently. They say to me, at least Skipton is trying new things.”
That wider movement also matters, Adams argues, because there’s still a powerful misconception among many FTBs that unless they already have a sizeable deposit, there’s no point even starting the journey. The more lenders and brokers talk about more creative propositions, the more awareness there is that help may be available — and the more reason there is for brokers to start those conversations earlier.
“Because of the doom and gloom out there, there’s a lack of awareness that there’s more help out there than would‑be clients think there is,” Adams stresses, suggesting that simply flagging that 100% mortgages exist can be enough to get a hesitant potential client talking.