SAFFRON FOR INTERMEDIARIES LAUNCHES SELF-EMPLOYED CAMPAIGN
12 July 2023
• Saffron Building Society has commissioned an independent survey to better understand how the self-employed feel about the mortgage market
• It follows Saffron’s recent changes to its self-employed lending criteria
• New broker case study reveals how collaborative working with the Saffron team helped secure a complex self-employed mortgage application
• Saffron announces a self-employed masterclass webinar to share key learnings with brokers
Saffron for Intermediaries has launched a campaign to help and support its broker partners to get more self-employed mortgage applications approved the first time around.
Since 2020 the self-employed have seen increasing challenges when applying for a mortgage and the ‘one size fits all’ approach of the larger lenders has posed challenges for more complex cases.
The situation doesn’t appear to be improving either, as the Mortgage Broker Tools (MBT) Affordability Index1identified that a third of all self-employed applications did not pass the lenders’ affordability criteria.
Utilising research to better understand the challenges
In a bid to further support brokers and their self-employed clients, Saffron For Intermediaries commissioned an independent survey to better understand how the self-employed feel about the mortgage market and what they perceive to be the stumbling blocks preventing them from achieving a successful application. The survey went out to 1,000 self-employed people and the headline statistics include:
• Nearly half (49%) said they wouldn’t feel confident finding a mortgage lender that offers an affordable self-employed product
• Less than 1 in 5 (19%) believe there is a good choice of lenders who offer self-employed mortgages
• Nearly three quarters (73%) of participants surveyed believe that being self-employed puts them at a disadvantage when applying for a mortgage
• Only 15% agreed with the statement that there are plenty of mortgage products available on the market for self-employed individuals
The data captured by the survey highlights how important it is for lenders and brokers to work in collaboration to ensure self-employed borrowers know that there are products available for them.
New criteria changes make mortgages more accessible for the self-employed
Saffron works hard to engage and listen to its brokers and it’s through this partnership-style approach that the lender continues to improve its service and criteria offering. Last week saw Saffron announce the most recent changes to its criteria, revealing even more flexibility for the self-employed.
From now, self-employed applicants with two years or more of trading accounts can access Saffron’s full range of products. This opens a whole raft of opportunities for the self-employed, including self-build and JBSP products.
Saffron also continues to only request one year of accounts to be able to access its specialist self-employed product range.
Read first-hand how Saffron helps the self-employed with complex cases
To highlight how Saffron partners closely with its brokers to support them when filing a self-employed application, the lender can share a recent case study from Kelly Sjoberg, a business development manager at Smart Advice Financial Solutions, a network partner of the Mortgage Advice Bureau.
This case study details how Kelly worked with the Saffron team to secure a self-employed mortgage for her client.
After returning to the UK from living abroad, Kelly’s client was looking to buy a house for her family. She found a property that was in a chain with a seller who had a short and fixed completion deadline, so the pressure was on to secure a mortgage as quickly as possible.
Kelly’s client’s property search started three years after returning to the UK, which meant she only had two years of business accounts and a low credit score. To compound matters, she had also taken some time off work for health reasons meaning her 2021 earnings were much lower in comparison to 2022.
After reviewing her case Kelly realised that her client’s circumstances meant that most lenders wouldn’t consider her, but she did manage to select one that looked favourable given the lending criteria only requesting one year of accounts. The application started to progress, however, as they neared completion the lender declared they would require an additional year’s accounts. Unable to provide this, the offer didn’t materialise.
Given the time constraints, time was not on her side, but thankfully Kelly had a pre-arranged meeting scheduled with one of Saffron’s BDMs. After discussing her client’s complete case with the Saffron BDM, Kelly submitted a mortgage application immediately. The process that followed was smooth and fast, and despite the initial lender falling through, Saffron managed to deliver an offer ahead of the deadline.
This is not an isolated case and Saffron is adept at working with brokers to get self-employed cases over the line when other lenders may not be able to support.
Self-employed masterclass webinar
Saffron For Intermediaries has recorded and shared a self-employed masterclass webinar on LinkedIn. In this special episode of SFI LIVE, Saffron addresses the complexities and nuances around mortgages for the self-employed.
Host Jay Evans was joined on the panel by Saffron For Intermediaries’ Tony Hall, Head of Business Development and Lee Williams, Business Development Manager. Furthermore, Kelly Sjoberg also joined to discuss her client’s case in more detail. The self-employed masterclass webinar is available to watch on-demand here.
For more information, please visit the Saffron For Intermediaries self-employed FAQs page here.
