Open Finance Meets Mortgage Advice
The FCA has identified SME lending as a priority use case for open finance, alongside work on digital verification that could reduce duplicated customer checks while preserving financial-crime controls. Although the initiative is focused on business finance, its direction of travel is relevant to mortgage and protection firms serving self-employed clients, sole traders and landlords. […]
AI Targets Conveyancing Delays
Residential conveyancing capacity is under growing strain. The number of solicitors practising in the sector has fallen by more than 2,000 since the end of 2021, while the average time to exchange has reportedly reached around 123 days. A separate report puts the five-year decline in conveyancer numbers at almost 16%. This creates a significant […]
Fixed Rates Rise Again
Mortgage pricing has moved sharply higher, with Moneyfacts reporting weekly increases of 17 basis points on the average two-year fix and 16 basis points on the average five-year fix. The average five-year fixed rate is now at its highest level since 2023, while the Bank of England has held Bank Rate at 3.75% amid inflation […]
First-Time Buyers Reshape Lending
First-time buyers accounted for 52.8% of UK mortgage sales in 2025, according to ONS figures, compared with 33.8% around two decades ago. This represents a structural shift in the core mortgage audience, even as higher rates, stamp duty changes and affordability pressures continue to shape buyer decisions. For financial advisers, the opportunity is to combine […]