For brokers, this creates both opportunity and challenge, with more cases falling outside rigid criteria despite being financially sound.
What brokers need to know:
- Changing income profiles: More borrowers rely on multiple income streams, freelance work or flexible employment rather than a single salary
- Life stage shifts: Clients are borrowing later, returning from career breaks or moving into self-employment earlier
- Credit complexity: Historic credit blips are increasingly common, often linked to life events rather than ongoing behaviour
- Affordability evolution: Income assessment now requires a more holistic, real-world view of sustainability
- Lender limitations: Automated decisioning and strict criteria can block strong cases unnecessarily
- Opportunity for brokers: Greater need for guidance on lender fit and underwriting approach
Complexity doesn’t automatically mean higher risk. As borrower journeys become less straightforward, brokers play an increasingly important role in navigating lender fit and underwriting approach by focusing on the full financial picture and making mortgages happen.
To see how Foundation can support you in making mortgages happen, speak to your Regional Account Manager today.
For intermediaries only
