The Broker Collective, a decentralised body representing mortgage brokers, has made its official debut today.
The organisation, which has dubbed itself an ‘untrade body’, aims to democratically and transparently represent UK mortgage brokers and their clients, ensuring their fair treatment.
Unlike traditional trade bodies, The Broker Collective is driven by practising brokers and doesn’t require a membership fee.
Aspiring members can join the official public group on LinkedIn. The organisation plans to operate only when it perceives a need to advocate for its members.
The inaugural campaign of The Broker Collective is the #24hourpledge. This initiative encourages all lenders to commit to providing a minimum notice of 24 hours to all affiliated brokers before withdrawing any mortgage product.
The Broker Collective emphasises the importance of stability, predictability, and open communication between lenders and brokers, recognising the potential stress caused by abrupt product withdrawal in a volatile financial market. They urge lenders to voluntarily commit to clear communication, collaborative support, and periodic review of this pledge.
Riz Malik, a member of The Broker Collective, explained the objectives of the organisation and its initial campaign: “We have launched The Broker Collective to ensure our clients and we, as practising mortgage brokers, are fairly treated by lenders and democratically and transparently represented.
“Our initial campaign is to ensure lenders commit to a minimum notice period of 24 hours to all affiliated brokers. This notice will include pertinent details such as the product being withdrawn, the reason for the withdrawal, and the exact time of the withdrawal.”
Malik added: “To this end, we will be calling for 12 lenders of different sizes and with different financial models to attend a digital roundtable, to discuss the issue. We will be in touch with those lenders in the days ahead and will publish the conversation on social media for all brokers to see.”
