Barclays is deepening its commitment to mortgage brokers as it accelerates its push for growth in the UK home loans market, investing heavily in technology, specialist teams and faster decision-making.

Roland McCormack (main picture, inset), head of mortgage intermediaries at Barclays UK, said the bank expects the vast majority of future mortgage growth to come through brokers, underlining intermediaries as central to its UK retail banking strategy.

McCormack said Barclays’ ambition was to become “brokers’ number one choice” across key customer segments including first-time buyers, movers and higher-value borrowers.

Over the past 18 months, the bank has overhauled its mortgage systems and processes. A new application platform has cut typical application times from around 45 minutes to about 15 minutes, with some cases completed in under four minutes. The system only prompts brokers for information relevant to each customer, reducing friction and errors.

AVM BOOST

Barclays has also expanded its use of automated valuations, with more than half of mortgage valuations now completed using AVMs.

The bank is the largest user of AVMs in the UK mortgage market, a move McCormack said typically removes five to seven days from the lending process while improving certainty for buyers, sellers and agents.

Process changes have been supported by increased specialisation. Barclays launched a dedicated Scottish mortgage team based in Glasgow to manage cases from initial enquiry through to completion, reflecting differences in the Scottish market.

ACCESS TO UNDERWRITERS

For loans above £700,000, brokers now have direct pre-application access to underwriters, with a single team tracking each case end to end.

The lender has also strengthened its position in new-build lending, where it ranks either first or second by volume, supported by specialist teams and faster offer turnaround.

Barclays has also extended lending to 95% loan-to-value on new-build properties and was the first lender to support a shared equity scheme designed to mirror Help to Buy.

Speaking at a media breakfast briefing on Monday at Barclays’ Canary Wharf headquarters McCormack said these changes were translating into tangible performance improvements.

LIVE CHAT IMPROVEMENT

Average application-to-offer times are now between eight and nine days, live chat services receive broker satisfaction scores of 4.9 out of five and the bank’s broker net promoter score has risen to +55 – its highest on record.

Looking ahead to 2026, McCormack said Barclays would build on its technology platform to make greater use of data, driving a step-change in speed and responsiveness rather than incremental improvements.

The bank also plans to extend its new systems beyond new lending into product transfers.

The bank also plans to extend its new systems beyond new lending into product transfers. Product innovation will continue, with a particular focus on first-time buyers, whom McCormack described as likely to dominate the market over the next two to three years.

Enhancements are also planned to Barclays’ Mortgage Boost proposition, which allows family income – rather than deposits – to support affordability.

“We are absolutely committed to the broker market,” McCormack said. “We’re investing heavily, we’ve seen the benefits already and there’s much more to come – particularly for first-time buyers.”