Mortgage News
Bridging the first-time buyer knowledge gap
Aldermore'slatestFirstTimeBuyerIndexrevealsacleardifference betweenwhataspiringhomebuyersexpectandwhatactuallyhappens.
Aldermore'slatestFirstTimeBuyerIndexrevealsacleardifference betweenwhataspiringhomebuyersexpectandwhatactuallyhappens, saysNicolaGoldie,HeadofStrategicPartnershipsandGrowth, Aldermore.Here'sthefullarticle.
Firsttimebuyersmightseemmoreinformedthanever.Thedaysof wanderingthehighstreetformortgageleafletsarelonggone,replaced byanabundanceofonlineresourcesandpropertyadviceattheclickofa button.Manyprospectivebuyerscometobrokershavingdonetheir homework,confidentaboutwhattheywantandwhattheythinkthey canafford.Buttheydon’talwaysgetitright.Aldermore’slatestFirst TimeBuyerIndexhighlightssignificantgapsbetweenwhatbuyers expectandwhatactuallyhappensduringthehomebuyingjourney.These expectationgapscanleadtostress,disappointment,andevendelays, buttheyalsorevealwheremortgagebrokerscanaddthemostvalue
The cost of misaligned expectations
Buyingafirsthomeisoftenportrayedasanexcitingmilestone,butin reality,theprocesscanbestressful.Accordingtooursurveyoffirst timebuyerswhopurchasedinthelasttwoyears:
· 46%foundthehomebuyingprocessconfusing.
· 44%saidthestressofbuyingmadethemfeelill.
· 42%saiditmadethemfeeldepressed.
Thesefiguresrevealacleartruth:it’softenuncertaintyandconfusion, notthetransactionitself,thatcausesthemostpressure. Understandingwheretheseknowledgegapsexistcanhelpbrokers guidebuyersmoreeffectively.
1.The
Oneof isarou buyers around repaym 31%on younge Thisdi decisio Buyers evene allows afforda theyca month guidan rejecti inthe
affordability perception gap
2.The deposit saving gap
Anothercommonknowledgegapisarounddeposits.Whilemostbuyers understandthatalargerdepositimprovestheirchancesofsecuringa mortgage,theyoftenlackawarenessofthebestwaystosave.
Ourresearchshowsthat40%ofprospectivefirst-timebuyershold theirdepositinacurrentaccount.
Manybuyersunderestimatehowlittleinterestcurrentaccountspay. Whilebrokersdon’tgivepersonalsavingsadvice,discussingdepositbuildingstrategiesandpointingbuyerstowardusefultoolscanmakea realdifferenceinhelping.
3. The broker timing gap
Brokersconsistentlyreceivehighmarksfromfirsttimebuyers.Inour survey:
· 95%ofbuyerswhousedabrokerfoundtheserviceuseful.
· 91%reportedapositiveoverallexperience.
However,amajorchallengeistiming.Only24%ofprospectivebuyers engageabrokerearlyintheprocess.Bythetime apurchaseiscompleted,thatnumber risesto71%.
Inotherwords,firsttimebuyers knowbrokersarevaluable;theyjust don’tthinktheyneedoneyet.
Where brokers can make a difference
Thechallengeisn’tprovingbrokervalue,firsttimebuyersalready recogniseit.Therealopportunityliesinencouragingearlier engagement.Brokersmakethemostimpactwhentheyguidebuyers beforeproblemsoccur,helpingthemunderstandrealisticbudgets, navigatepaperwork,andapproachpropertysearcheswithconfidence.
Whatbrokerscandoismakeitclearerthatsupportisavailablemuch earlierinthejourney.Positioningyourselfasanearly-stageguide,not justamortgagearranger,canhopefullyhelppullsomebuyersforward beforeproblemssetin.
Thatmightincludepromotingmortgage-readychecksinyour marketing,offeringinformalonlineQ&Asessionsforthosestillatthe thinkingstage,orrunningfreefirst-timebuyerclinicsinyourlocal community.Workingcloselywithlocalestateagentsorspeakingto existingclientsabouthelpingtheiradultchildren,canalsoopenearlier conversations.
Noteverybuyerwillseekadviceearly,butforthosewhodo,the benefitsaretangible:smootherprocesses,reducedstress,andbetter preparationforoneoflife’sbiggestfinancialcommitments.
Inshort,brokershaveauniqueopportunitytobridgetheknowledge gapforfirsttimebuyers.Byeducatingclients,managingexpectations, andguidingthemthroughtheearlystagesofhomeownership,brokers canhelpmakethejourneylessdaunting,andultimatelymore successful.
Research conducted, on behalf of Aldermore bank, by Opinium between 10th October – 3rd November 2025, among 2,000 Prospective First Time Buyers and 500 recent First Time Buyers from the last two years.
FormoreinformationonhowAldermorecanhelpwithyour mortgagecases,pleasevisit
www.aldermore.co.uk/intermediaries/mortgages
BM Solutions –
Whats New?
CustomerswillnowreceiveaWelcometextmessagethreedaysafter completionoftheirmortgage,toletthemknowhowtheycanviewand managetheirmortgageonline.
Thetextmessage(SMS)hasalinktotheBMMortgageswebsitewhere customerscanregisterfortheonlineportal:
‘Mr. A Customer, manage your mortgage and property online with Birmingham Midshires at bmmortgages.co.uk. Use your full account number ending xxxx to register’.
Key changes
Two-thirdsofcustomerssaytheywanttomanagetheirmortgage accountonline.Thenewwelcometextwillhelpcustomersunderstand howtheycandothismuchsooner,andreducethenumberof customerqueriesreceivedaftercompletion.
Thisnewtextmessageisinadditiontotheexistingtextmessage customersreceivewiththeirfirstpaymentamountaround2daysafter completion.Ifacustomerwishestoamendtheirdirectdebitdatethey willneedtowaituntilthefirstpaymentismadebeforetheycanchange thisonline.
Halifax make Product Transfer system improvements
Whats New?
Halifaxhaveupdatedtheirproducttransfer applicationsystemwithnewscreenswhich aremoremodernandintuitive.
Halifaxhavealsoaddedsomehelpfulpromptmessageswhenthere’sa choiceofstartdateforthenewratebetweenthefollowingmonthora futuredate,soyoucancheckyou’veselectedtherequireddate.
Key changes
Amoremodernandcleanerproducttransferapplicationsystemto makeitquickerandeasiertocompleteapplications
Anewmessageifselectedtostartfrom1stoffollowingmonthand newrateishigherthancurrentrate:
‘Thenewproducthasahigherinterestratethanthecurrentone.By switchingtothenewratenowthenewhighermonthlypaymentwill startsooner’
Anewmessageifselectedtofuturedateandthenewrateislower thancurrentrate:
‘Thenewproducthasalowerinterestratethanthecurrentone.By switchingtothenewratenowthenewlowermonthlypayment wouldstartsooner’
Thesemessagesarejustpromptsandyoucanstillchoosebetween theavailablestartdatesasrequired
Moreinformation–Therearenochangestohowyousubmitand completeproducttransferapplications.
Protection & GI News
EXCLUSIVE: Royal London Webinar | Critical Illness Cover and why it matters
WearedelightedtoannouncedetailsforoursecondExclusiveRoyal London&JustMortgageswebinarof2026onTuesday-24thFeb11am.
InthisWebinar,RoyalLondonwillbeexploringCriticalIllnessCoverand whyitmatters.
What will be covered:
Marketinsights–KeymotivatorsbehindconsumerschoosingCritical IllnessCover
Financial&emotionalsupportintimeofcrisis CIExpertcomparisons
Thevalueproposition–whyupgradedasstandard Additionalsupport Reallifestories
This webinar is not to be missed! Anoutlookinvitewillbesenttoyouon 16 Februarybutyoucanalsosimplyc th thebuttonbelowwhenitistime:
Inside Income Protection: Turning uncertainty
into confidence
Overview
IncomeProtectioncanfeelcomplex,butitdoesn’thaveto.Buildingon thesuccessoflastyear’shugelypopularIPAWFocusWeek(where97% ofattendeessaidthey’drecommendit),thison demandsession explorestheFAQsadviserscareaboutmost.Accesspracticalinsights, myth bustingexplanationsandexpertguidancethatwillhelpyouadvise withconfidence.
What You’ll Learn
Packedwithactionableideasandinsiderknowledge,thissessionwill showyouhowtoavoidcommonpitfalls,understandhowclaims decisionsaremade,anddeliverbetterclientoutcomes.
Learning Objectives
Bywatchingthison-demandwebinar,youwill:
UnderstandthekeyfactorsthatinfluencesuccessfulIncome Protectionclaims
IdentifyandavoidcommonmistakeswhenadvisingonIP Learnbestpracticesforearlynotificationandaccuratefinancial assessments
Applypracticaltipstoimproveclienttrustandoutcomes
Speakers
AndyMaciver–IncomeProtectionClaimsExpert
JordanClark–MarketDevelopmentManager
Complete a very short registration form and then you will have access to this on demand content:
Industry News
Mortgageratescontinuetobeinfluencedbymarketuncertainty. Recentdatashowsthatalthoughfixedmortgagedealsremain competitivelypriced,somelendershaveedgedratesslightlyhigher duetorisingswaprates.
LatestfiguresfromUKFinancethisweekshowmortgagearrears continuingtodeclineacrossbothhomeownerandbuy-to-let portfolios,withoverallarrearswellbelowlong-termaverages. Possessionnumbersalsofell,reflectingongoinglendersupportfor borrowersandarelativelystablecreditenvironment.
LatestRICSsurveydatashowsearlysignsofrecoveryintheUK housingmarket,withbuyerenquiriesandpricebalancesimproving throughJanuary,thestrongestbalancesincemid-2025. Nonetheless,overallactivityremainssubduedandanyrecoveryis expectedtobegradual.
NationwidehasintroducedQualifiedElectronicSignatures(QES) formortgagedeeds eliminatingtheneedfortraditionalwet-ink
