An industry panel at today’s Financial Services Expo (FSE) London have agreed that the UK’s housing and mortgage markets are unlikely to feel the full impact of ‘Brexit’ for a number of years.
The individuals on the panel – Gary Salter (Nationwide Building Society), Adrian Moloney (One Savings Bank), John Coffield (Paradigm Mortgage Services) and Jason Berry (Uinsure) – were asked their views on the post-EU referendum market and whether there had been significant changes.
Coffield said: “As far as we’re concerned its business as usual in terms of transaction flows. July was our second best month of the year in that regard, and while we did see the seasonal turndown in August, this happens every year and I don’t think you can pin that on ‘Brexit’. My view is that it will be two to three years until we start to see the full effects of the EU vote on our market.”
Moloney agreed that the market had yet to see a Brexit effect. “The good news is that lenders are looking to lend,” he said. “There is no shortage of funding at the moment, which is obviously a positive.”
Uninsure’s Berry however cautioned against an overly optimistic view. “Housing is in crisis in my opinion,” he said. “The new Housing Minister, Gavin Barwell, has a big job on his hands. The fact we do not have enough housing stock will affect the number of housing transactions.”
Despite the EU vote, all panellists suggested that this period was a strong one for mortgage intermediaries and that, for the rest of 2016, and into 2017, there were a number of opportunities to be grasped.
When asked, what brokers should be doing over the months ahead, Berry said: “Sell insurance. We have a dysfunctional marketplace at the moment. The elite advisers leave no gaps; they connect with clients and they work their data hard. They don’t let customers walk out and transact with an aggregator.”
Coffield agreed that advisers currently find themselves in a strong position. “The broker market is in a quality place at present,” he said. “I would advise them to stay close to their clients and look into the remortgage opportunities that exist.”
Moloney urged brokers “to keep doing what you’re doing” and in the buy-to-let space to make sure they “tie up with tax advisers and accountants” in order to offer the right advice for those landlords who may be seeking to move their existing portfolios to corporate vehicles or to make new purchases through them.
