The current mortgage market: the good and bad news

March 21, 2010 by Brendan O'Neill

Mortgage Advisors

News

Anybody who wants to train to become a mortgage advisor at the moment is asking the same questions that somebody looking to take out a new mortgage is also asking: what is the housing market like at the moment?

There is both good and bad news when it comes to the housing market and subsequently mortgages or home loans market.

The bad news is that the demand for new mortgages right now is quite low however, this does have a great knock-on effect for mortgages – which brings us to the good news. When demand for home loans is low, competition comes back into the mortgage market. Mortgage lenders everywhere want to grab those mortgages available so interest rates are improving, capped rates are starting to show again and the loan to value (LTV) ratios are improving. This applies to both first time buyers and those seeking remortgages.

For those in the mortgage adviser trade and those looking at taking their CeMAP exam to get into the business, there is always going to be business about. When competition is improving, like now, prospective borrowers need expert advice to sort the wheat from the chaff and really find that mortgage deal that suits their needs. When competition is not so good and interest rates are poor, demand for new mortgages may drop but the demand for remortgages increases as people want to find competitive mortgage deals. They certainly don’t want to remain on their lender’s increasing standard variable rate – which is the situation many will face over the next two years.

When you looking to become a mortgage adviser, the question should be not so much what is the mortgage market like now, but how it fares in general over the years. Unlike many professions, the work of a mortgage adviser is never done.