EDITION 1 | MAY 2021
31
The rental sector
The country may have been in and out of lockdown , meaning that for the large part , much of the business you will have placed will have taken place as virtual or socially distanced appointments . However , market recovery , after the first initial shock of complete lockdown back in March 2020 , is demonstrating that it really has not meant your business has to be locked down .
Sam Cameron-Carruthers
Head of Marketing SimplyBiz Mortgages
Yes , without doubt , we have all had to quickly adapt to new ways of working , but the housing market remains strong in a difficult economy , and this is one of the first times we have seen this . With economic and banking crises of one type or another taking place every ten years or so , it ’ s often the housing industry that takes the hit first , but not this time is seems . We only have to look back at 2008 to see that , and let ’ s not forget the dark days of 15 % interest rates the decade before . Rates in the mortgage markets are again competitively strong , and at the time of writing , 95 % deals are being seen across several lenders as their confidence in the market grows .
Many advisers have looked to diversify their businesses , and indeed , we have encouraged that . If you can market your services well , but find that the enquiries that come in are beyond either abilities or the time available , then you have several routes to refer that business , retain the client and still secure an income . The pandemic has offered challenges across the board and we are extremely encouraged to see that after the first initial thoughts of ‘ let ’ s batten down the hatches and ride out this storm ,’ firms have been actively looking to find new opportunities and income streams .