Knowledge Bank has reported that March saw a complete change of the most common searches on its criteria platform performed by brokers in the equity release sector.
This is the first month that a sector has had a completely new top five since Knowledge Bank’s index began in July 2018.
As the UK’s largest database of mortgage lending criteria, Knowledge Bank tracks the most common searches performed by brokers each month as they look to place a client’s case.
The top search in the equity release sector was for lenders who would allow a “married couple application in a single name” followed by brokers searching for “buy-to-let equity release”.
Making up the remaining top five criteria that brokers were searching on behalf of their clients were search terms for “leasehold remaining term/beginning of term”, “maximum age at application” and “early repayment charges”.
There were also several changes in search popularity in the second charge sector, with only the search for the “maximum LTV” holding onto the top spot. Knowledge Bank’s data also revealed the two searches entering the top five were focused on debt, with “defaults over £500” and “capital raising for debt consolidation” the third and fourth most common searches respectively.
Bridging and buy-to-let searches offered more consistency in March, with the Knowledge Bank index showing that all the top five held their place in the rankings for a second month.
“The clean sweep of changes in equity release searches but total consistency in BTL demonstrates once again that there are no hard and fast rules when it comes to criteria changes,” Knowledge Bank CEO, Nicola Firth, commented.
“This is why it's so imperative brokers stay up-to-date with any and all changes. We recently completed the five millionth search on Knowledge Bank, equating to almost 2,500 a day which clearly shows the conscious effort made by brokers to source the best options for their clients.
“As we continue to endure a period of economic instability coupled with the pressures of the increased costs of living, criteria not price continues to be the main factor in securing a mortgage deals.”
Latest News
-
Average mortgage rates creep up for first time in eight months
-
Titan Wealth agrees acquisition of Blacktower Group
-
Savers increasing allocations to fixed accounts, research shows
-
SIPP withdrawal requests jump 33% ahead of Autumn Budget
-
44% of first-time buyers looking at new builds, study finds
-
AJ Bell integrates with Dynamic Planner
NEW BUILD IN FOCUS - NEW EPISODE OF THE MORTGAGE INSIDER PODCAST, OUT NOW
Figures from the National House-Building Council saw Q1 2025 register a 36% increase in new homes built across the UK compared with the same period last year, representing a striking development for the first-time buyer market. But with the higher cost of building, ongoing planning challenges and new and changing regulations, how sustainable is this growth? And what does it mean for brokers?
The role of the bridging market and technology usage in the industry
Content editor, Dan McGrath, sat down with chief operating officer at Black & White Bridging, Damien Druce, and head of development finance at Empire Global Finance, Pete Williams, to explore the role of the bridging sector, the role of AI across the industry and how the property market has fared in the Labour Government’s first year in office.
Does the North-South divide still exist in the UK housing market?
What do the most expensive parts of the country reveal about shifting demand? And why is the Manchester housing market now outperforming many southern counterparts?
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets.
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets.
The new episode of The Mortgage Insider podcast, out now
Regional housing markets now matter more than ever. While London and the Southeast still tend to dominate the headlines from a house price and affordability perspective, much of the growth in rental yields and buyer demand is coming from other parts of the UK.
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance.
In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance.
© 2019 Perspective Publishing Privacy & Cookies
Recent Stories