The Intermediary – July 2025 - Flipbook - Page 46
SPECIALIST FINANCE
Opinion
Brokers are shaping
what comes next
T
here’s a misconception
that product innovation
starts in a boardroom.
That lenders invent
things in isolation, test
them in spreadsheets,
and then present them to brokers
as finished ideas. But the most
valuable developments usually start
somewhere far more grounded: a call,
a coffee, a case that doesn’t quite fit.
Because it’s brokers who see the
cracks first. They’re close to the clients
navigating change, rebalancing
portfolios, responding to regulation,
and reframing their strategies for the
long term. The question is whether
lenders are truly listening.
More oen than not, brokers
don’t just identify the problem. They
bring the spark of the solution. The
challenge, then, is whether lenders are
set up to do something with it.
Insight becomes structure
At HTB, that’s how we try to
work. Portfolio Edge is a great
example of what can happen when
broker feedback drives product
design. It came directly from
repeated conversations about what
landlords were facing: a need to
reshape portfolios, release equity,
manage affordability, and do it all
without being forced into someone
else’s timeline.
For many, the pressure was
building. Rising costs, tighter
affordability margins, and shiing
tax policy meant decisions couldn’t
be delayed. But the tools just
weren’t there.
The existing market options
didn’t fit. Most lacked the structural
flexibility to support both short- and
long-term goals in a single move. The
answer wasn’t just a new product,
46
The Intermediary | July 2025
it was a two-part structure that
gave clients clarity, control and the
confidence to act.
Portfolio Edge combines a term
mortgage for retained assets with a
bridging facility for those earmarked
for sale. The term gives stability for
the core portfolio. The bridge adds
flexibility to support the transition.
Together, they offer a single
solution that enables landlords to
reposition efficiently, managing tax,
affordability and strategy with far
fewer compromises, while laying the
groundwork for what comes next.
Whether it’s the next acquisition
or a future refinance, the structure
supports the full investment journey.
It’s a simple idea, built to support a
complex reality.
Complexity isn’t
the problem
Brokers rarely bring us easy cases,
and we wouldn’t want them to. It
might be a mixed-use portfolio, an
unconventional income profile, or a
time-sensitive restructure involving
multiple moving parts. That’s the
nature of today’s market.
Some lenders treat complexity as
a reason to step back, but really it
should be seen as an opportunity to
engage. Because in most cases, these
deals are absolutely deliverable.
It’s just a maer of having the right
mindset, the right structure, and the
ability to move with the realities of
portfolio management.
Not just products
For lenders, broker input should not
just guide what we build, but shape
how we think. Portfolio Edge wasn’t
the result of a product brainstorm.
It was the result of case-by-case
ALEX UPTON
is managing director, specialist
mortgages and bridging,
at Hampshire Trust Bank
collaboration, understanding what
clients needed, where the friction was,
and what was stopping brokers from
moving forward.
More often than
not, brokers don’t just
identify the problem.
They bring the spark
of the solution”
As the landscape continues to
evolve, with regulation shiing,
investor sentiment maturing,
and the market becoming more
professionalised, that partnership
maers more than ever.
Brokers are interpreting the
change, advising clients through it,
and helping them plan what comes
next. Our role must be to support
that journey, not with off-the-shelf
solutions, but with structures that
match the way clients actually invest.
That support goes both ways.
Brokers challenge us to think harder,
act faster and structure beer. That’s
how progress happens when neither
side seles for what already exists.
So, to brokers everywhere: keep
bringing us the difficult cases. Keep
pushing for beer answers. Because
when we work together, the solutions
that emerge are built to last.
If it’s complicated, bring it on.
There’s no need to wait for the market
to shi before lenders act – if brokers
are seeing it now, that’s when we want
to hear it. ●
