"There is huge pressure at the moment across the industry - record numbers of cases have been pouring through lenders’ doors, causing serious delays and blockages."
FR: You are head of intermediary distribution for specialist mortgages at Hampshire Trust Bank. What does this entail on a day-to-day basis?
My role is to oversee the relationships with all of the network and club partners that we have on panel, ensuring our strategies are aligned and that we are working towards the same goals. I help with identifying opportunities for our sales team, making introductions to key firms and also have responsibility for the marketing and events that HTB attends with those partners.
FR: What is the value of mortgage club/network distribution to a lender like HTB?
Mortgage clubs and networks bring immense value to all lenders as well as to the whole adviser community. They put on some fantastic events and allow us to showcase our product propositions to a much wider audience and reach advisers that we would not otherwise have access to. In addition, they let us provide marketing messages and updates to their databases.
They also provide helpdesks to all of their members; they are a fountain of knowledge and can advise on criteria and USPs that help advisers place a tricky case. This is invaluable to a lender like HTB as often a broker is put off placing a case because of a combination of complex factors but this is where we come into our own.
FR: What is your intermediary distribution strategy for the next 12 months?
Historically HTB has partnered with master brokers and packagers, and more recently has expanded its distribution to include a few select clubs and networks. Over the next 12 months I would like to increase distribution to include more networks and clubs but this must be done in a very controlled way for a number of reasons. There is huge pressure at the moment across the industry - record numbers of cases have been pouring through lenders’ doors, causing serious delays and blockages.
We pride ourselves on our service at HTB and it is incredibly important that as we increase distribution we have capacity internally to ensure that our service and experience that our brokers receive is not compromised. However, as I am sure everyone can appreciate, lending aspirations do not stand still and so it is very much a balancing act to ensure one is working towards their company’s corporate plan and ensuring their distributor, broker and customer journey is the best it can possibly be.
FR: What are the key product areas for HTB’s specialist mortgage division?
We are a specialist buy-to-let lender but would say that we have appetite to lend over and above a lot of our competitors as we very much consider each case on its own merit. Some of the areas I see being very popular are around property - holiday lets, HMOs and MUFBs (with no limit to the number of rooms or units), flats above commercial premises and semi-commercial properties with a 50:50 split. Where applicants are concerned we lend to individuals and companies including Trusts and offshore entities and are very comfortable with expats and foreign nationals, with no limit to the number of applicants, directors or shareholders.
FR: The specialist mortgage market is a crowded one. How can HTB stand out from the competition?
It is indeed a crowded one and that is why it is so important to provide the best possible service, coupled with an innovative product range that offers flexibility and a real ‘common sense’ approach.
We like to build relationships and provide dedicated specialists at each stage of the journey which really helps to give brokers confidence.
At HTB we really can deal with the complex but we like the experience to appear simple. Finally, it is about being transparent.
It is an incredibly tough and volatile market at the moment so it is important to communicate effectively and ensure we give as much notice as we possibly can regarding any changes we as a lender may need to make.
FR: You recently launched an EPC Refurb product. How has that been received? How aware are brokers of the 2025 EPC deadline?
I recently published an article on EPCs, highlighting the need for advisers and their landlord clients to be aware of the impending EPC requirements for rental properties and have a strategy in place to meet them. 2025 may seem a way off but in reality, with labour in short supply, cost of works rising and some portfolios having multiple properties in need of refurbishment, landlords need to take action now.
We have always had the option of a ‘Refurb in Term’ which allows landlords to carry out light refurbishment on habitable properties within the first three months of their term before a tenant moves in. However, we launched EPC Refurb with the change in legislation to rental properties in mind. We meet a real need with the product which consists of a six-month bridge followed by a term loan discounted by 0.20% for the remainder of the term on achieving an EPC ‘C’ rating. It allows for more substantial refurbishment and may also suit landlords looking to buy properties at auction.
FR: The buy-to-let market remains robust at present, despite economic conditions becoming more challenging. Do you anticipate any major changes in landlord sentiment and portfolio strategy over the coming months?
We have seen so much change over the last five years or so that has impacted landlords, with the phasing out of mortgage tax relief and introduction of the 3% surcharge in Stamp Duty Land Tax, changes to HMO regulations, and stricter ruling around stress tests and ICR calculations to name but a few. All of these factors have already seen many landlords exiting the buy-to-let market and dispensing with their properties, so I think we are now left with a more professional group of landlords who are growing and diversifying their portfolios. We have seen a lot of diversification into HMOs and MUFBs giving much higher returns as well as landlords looking further afield across the UK for their properties.
Lenders including HTB have really embraced the holiday let market, with staycations gaining in popularity and I see this as an area that will start to increase prominence within landlords’ portfolios going forward, especially as we see more lender innovation around how these properties are valued.
