HML has joined the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA).

The third-party mortgage administration company is part of the Skipton Group, which has recently seen Paul Darwin, head of intermediary sales at Skipton Intermediaries, appointed as director of IMLA.

HML, which has approximately £37 billion of assets under management, has become an Associate of IMLA due to the growing importance of intermediaries in the post-Mortgage Market Review (MMR) world, it said.

John Grimbaldeston, director of products and marketing at HML, said: “We are delighted to become an Associate of IMLA. In a post-MMR world, intermediaries are building on their previous professionalism to deliver an even more important service to customers and lenders, and HML wants to strengthen its relationship with and understanding of the broker sector.

“According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Paul Smee, new lending is expected to reach £195 billion in 2014. This reiterates the growing importance of intermediaries, and we look forward to developing closer relationships both through our existing clients and new clients.

“We expect several new lenders to enter the market over the coming months, and HML is well placed to work with these through our compliant and integrated origination platform. Outsourcing new lending allows lenders to focus on delivering a consistent, efficient and quality customer service by reducing complexity and costs and increasing speed to market. These will prove to be key differentiators for lenders looking to attract new customers.”

Darwin said: “IMLA’s primary aim is to develop the UK intermediary lending market through strong and effective relationships with brokers, lenders, the regulator and industry-related bodies. Membership brings a wealth of experience of this market and IMLA therefore welcomes HML as an Associate.

“I am sure HML and Skipton will both benefit from working collaboratively with IMLA to ensure growth, innovation and customer choice through an active mortgage market.”