New research out from Smart Money People, the financial services review site, has shown that mortgage brokers have found it difficult to stay abreast of recent changes to lenders’ products and criteria.

During October, mortgage brokers were able to share their feedback about the last five lenders they did business with, be it banks, building societies, specialist or lifetime lenders as part of the H2 2022 Mortgage Lender Benchmark. This research also asked brokers to rate the technology they use, including criteria and sourcing systems.

Brokers admitted that they have struggled to keep up to date with lender updates and while technology is helping, it doesn’t appear to be the silver bullet, as many respondents said they also check lenders’ websites and most don’t wholly appear to rely on sourcing.

Meanwhile, 43% of brokers who took part in the survey said they rely on emails from lenders either wholly or somewhat in order to be aware of their latest product and criteria updates.

A number of brokers expressed despair that they just couldn’t keep up with all of the changes, especially since the mortgage market was thrown into turmoil by the government’s ‘mini Budget’.

Jacqueline Dewey, CEO of Smart Money People, said: “The findings we’ve published today indicate the extent to which mortgage brokers have found it difficult to stay on top of all the movement in lenders’ product offerings, brought about by the recent economic turmoil.

“Brokers are certainly frustrated that some lenders are changing rates on a Friday evening or Sunday, making them feel they need to work out of hours. With so little notice it’s adding a lot of extra pressure to already stressed brokers.

“These findings come in advance of the publication of Smart Money People’s twice-yearly Mortgage Lender Benchmark which dissects the state of the mortgage industry according to the views of brokers. The results will be made public in a few weeks’ time.”