Brokers identify growing concern

New research suggests monolines continue to lose ground to the banks in an area that brokers now identify as the single-most important factor in originating deals.

While the latest CMP Brokers on Lenders survey points to a two-point slip in satisfaction with the turnaround times of all channel lenders, a September poll from MortgageBrokerNews.ca is reiterating just how important that factor is in satisfying clients and closing deals.
 
Some 32 per cent of mortgage professionals responding to the online research question identified turnaround times as the “single-most important lender feature.” Underwriting support and interest rates came a distant second and third, capturing 25 per cent and 10 per cent of the vote, respectively.
 
“That reflects the challenges that monolines, in particular, will face in this market now and in the year to come,” Bernie Kramer, a Windsor-based broker, told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “It is crucial that our monolines streamline their underwriting process to be able to give us commitment letters much faster in order to allow brokers to better compete with the banks.”
 
That may be easier said than done given the 2014Brokers on Lender results and the modest year-over-year drop in satisfaction with turnaround times. It’s worth noting that several lenders actually improved their individual year-over-year performances in the category, which is one of 12 brokers use to “rank, rate and roust” their lender partners with the annual survey.
 
But any ground lost by broker lenders as a whole likely reflects the continuing challenge of adhering to tougher underwriting guidelines introduced in 2012 for federally regulated players.

Brokers say they continue to grapple with balancing lender and client expectations