Mortgage approval times have increased 144% since the start of the year

  • HSBC is currently the fastest mortgage lender, with a median approval time of just 10 days for mortgages¹

  • On average, it takes 22 days to receive a mortgage decision, vs. 8 in January 2020²

  • Trussle has launched a new stamp duty calculator to show the savings that can be made during the stamp duty holiday, and the fastest mortgage lender available

17th December - Online mortgage broker Trussle has revealed that the average amount of time it takes to get a mortgage approved has increased from just eight days in January this year to 22 days in November, with many lenders feeling the heat of the stamp duty holiday rush.² However, for those looking to beat the forthcoming holiday cut-off, there are some lenders who could help consumers squeeze their application approval in the remaining few weeks. 

HSBC has become the fastest UK lender for mortgage approval times, with a median approval time of just 10 days in November.³ Previously, Barclays had been the fastest lender with an average approval time of 10 days during September 2020, but processing times have now risen to 19 days.⁴

The average mortgage approval time for HSBC has been reduced from 19 days in September to only 10 in November. ⁵ 

The five lenders with the fastest median approval times in November 2020 were -  

  1. HSBC – 10 days

  2. BM Solutions – 13 days

  3. Halifax – 14 days

  4. Accord – 14 days

  5. Barclays – 19 days 

The time to approve mortgages has increased significantly with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this year, Trussle’s data found that the average time from mortgage submission to approval had increased by 120% since November 2019 (from 10 days to 22 days).⁷ In addition, the stamp duty holiday has created unprecedented levels of demand in mortgage applications and Trussle calculated that property completion times had risen to around 115 days in the UK⁸, in line with predictions provided by other industry experts.⁹

Miles Robinson, Head of Mortgages at Trussle, comments: 

“2020 has been a tough year for everyone and lenders are certainly not immune from the pressure. The strains of adapting processes during the pandemic coupled with increased demand have seen many wait times extend to unprecedented levels. 

Mortgage approval times are extremely important to the wider process of purchasing a property. And as many race to beat the stamp duty deadline, securing a mortgage is quickly becoming imperative to saving up to £15,000.¹⁰ 

While it’s understandable for lenders to be under increased pressure, it’s encouraging to see HSBC bucking the trend and we’re hopeful that things will start to return to normality as we head into 2021 and the hopeful era of COVID vaccination.”

Trussle has developed a new stamp duty calculator to help people determine exactly how much stamp duty they will pay on their house purchase. To allow for the stamp duty holiday, the calculator will show customers how much they would pay both before and after the 31 March deadline. The tool also includes live information on which lenders have the fastest approval times, to give customers a sense of how long applying for a mortgage will take.

~Ends~

Contact

For further information, please contact:

Emily Coyle at [email protected] or Leilah Mackie at [email protected] 

We’ve taken extra care to ensure the information provided within this release is presented in a way that’s compliant with regulatory requirements. If you have any questions about how to repurpose this information or require any further assistance, please contact Leilah Mackie at Trussle.

1. Trussle internal data based on how long it takes mortgage lenders to approve mortgages after we submit them December 2020

2. Ibid

3. Ibid

4. Trussle internal data based on how long it takes mortgage lenders to approve mortgages after we submit them September 2020

5. Trussle internal data based on how long it takes mortgage lenders to approve mortgages after we submit them December 2020

6. Ibid

7. Trussle data November 2020 vs November 2019

8. Data based on how long it took Trussle customers to go from signing up on our website to completing their property purchase over 90 days up until 21 October 2020. This information is for guidance only

9. Source: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/buy/200000-people-miss-stamp-duty-holiday-surge-demand-creates-bottleneck/

10. https://www.which.co.uk/news/2020/07/stamp-duty-cut-up-to-500000-how-much-will-you-save/

About Trussle

Trussle is your free online mortgage broker, helping you wherever you are on the ladder.

Our technology and expert mortgage advisers enable us to make better mortgage decisions in minutes, providing greater certainty and speed about your home financing options.

See how much you could borrow or save in minutes. Whether, you’re looking at homes for the first time, or you’re looking to remortgage for the fourth time. Our quick online calculators will help you take the next step on your home ownership journey.

Trussle is a trading name of Trussle Lab Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (firm reference 924229).

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

More information can be found at https://trussle.com/ and Trussle’s press pack is available here.

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