"Assisting clients navigate the increasingly complex mortgage market requires advisers that have ever closer links to lenders and providers."
FR: Please tell us a little bit about your background, your role, and Xpress Mortgages?
I established Xpress Mortgages, a directly authorised mortgage advisers, 18 years ago in 2006. We are based in Byfleet village, Surrey. A small, but lively office. The team of four offers a whole of market service which serves all clients from first-time buyers, home movers, buy-to-let landlords, specialist lending and later life. We also advise on and arrange mortgage-related insurance and income protection.
My role is not only as a full-time mortgage adviser but also a business leader managing the team and the day to day running of Xpress Mortgages.
FR: How important is technology to your business and how do you utilise technology in your day-to-day proposition for both your brokers and their customers?
Technology has become so important to our business, especially in recent years, helping us to continue to be as efficient as possible and providing our clients with the best mortgage journey possible.
We look to integrate technology, wherever possible and appropriate, where we can demonstrate improvement to our processes and customer experience.
Nowadays clients expect to conduct business with us from any location, at any time and via a multitude of communication routes. Giving our clients control of how they engage at the outset, ensures that everyone can access consistent mortgage advice, irrespective of location and circumstances.
We are constantly looking to improve our offering and processes by using the latest technology available to us.
FR: You use One Mortgage System across your business, why did you choose them initially and how have they helped your business grow since you appointed them?
The decision to adopt OMS was taken after a full review of exactly what our business needed to face future market requirements. We wanted to move to a CRM system that would speed up the mortgage administration process as spending time repeatedly keying in the same data to numerous platforms was not the best use of our time.
Since integrating OMS, we are seeing real benefits in communication, work efficiencies and in the future proofing of our business. The training and ongoing service provided by OMS is second to none and very much mirrors the exacting standards that we adhere to ourselves.
FR: What challenges do you think brokers face currently and why; plus, conversely what opportunities do you believe exist?
The volatility around the world currently presents the largest challenge to the UK economy and therefore the broker community. With no control over the uncertainty we face, opportunities present themselves by offering consistent, dependable, and accurate advice.
Our clients are looking for some certainty in areas that are in their control. Assisting clients navigate the increasingly complex mortgage market requires advisers that have ever closer links to lenders and providers. Closer working relationships with lenders and providers will provide advantage and opportunity throughout 2024, into 2025 and beyond.
FR: What are your main areas of focus for 2024 and what can we expect from Xpress Mortgages for the rest of this year?
We are looking to continue doing more of the same around outstanding service to our clients. Consumer duty was a real focus for us in 2023 and continues to be at the heart of all we do ensuring continued good customer outcomes is key for 2024 and beyond.
We have adopted OMS as our chosen CRM which has seen the mortgage application process speed up and become more seamless, we are looking to further build on our technology and are in talks which will see Xpress have a client app that has the ability to track that our clients are on the most suitable mortgage deal daily, which will further enhance our customers experience and provide good customer outcomes.
We have a focus on building savings, by efficiencies, which will also play a big part in our activity this year. Being ready to adopt and progress new initiatives in the industry are dependent on investing in our business framework. Only with a solid base can we maximise benefits from the ever-evolving market and wider world.
