It found that 25% of non-PAYE workers have never applied due to a fear of rejection. One in 10 considered the process too daunting to apply or didn’t know enough about it, while 8% didn’t know who to speak to about getting one. A further 8% said their business was under two-years-old and therefore wouldn’t have the right documentation to be approved.
How can brokers support the self-employed?
TML’s director of distribution, Sara Palmer (pictured) believes that brokers have a role to play in changing the perceptions of those who are self-employed.
“It starts with challenging the deep-seated belief that being self-employed means you can’t secure a mortgage,” Palmer told Mortgage Introducer. “Brokers need to reach out to more of these people so they can see there is help out there and there are avenues to home ownership, whether this be through showcasing success stories, or by identifying the key hurdles that self-employed people think they’ll fall at and the solutions available.
“I was surprised by the high percentage of people who think they won’t be approved for a mortgage and therefore don’t even apply. It reveals just how much still needs to be done to support self-employed individuals, and how this needs to be an area of focus when reviewing services and product offerings.”
Palmer said challenges persist with people’s understanding of the specialist lending market and the fact that there are, more often than not, suitable solutions available.
