They say that buying a home and getting divorced are two of the most stressful things a person can go through in their lifetime. So imagine what it must feel like having to do both at the same time.

It is definitely a case of ‘there but for the grace of God…’ but with almost 100,000 couples in the UK divorcing each year it is now very much a fact of life that dissolving a marriage and buying a property are becoming inextricably linked.

Any experienced professional mortgage adviser will only be too aware of how complex the affordability and criteria rules have become over the past few years, even more so since the onset of MMR and MCD. But suddenly, throw in a division of assets on separation plus some spousal and child maintenance and all nicely wrapped up in some school fees with a monthly PCP as the cherry on top and you soon realise how the consumer sees getting a mortgage post-divorce as being a bit of a minefield.

Over the course of 2018 and in to 2019 we began to see an increase in clients requesting a Mortgage Capacity Report. For those not familiar with the terminology, an MCR is a detailed investigation into what level of mortgage you are likely to be successful in obtaining. It will also compare this level of maximum borrowing with the amount of mortgage you can actually afford to maintain. But what we also noticed was that a lot of the requests for these reports were coming from our professional connections – lawyers, accountants and IFAs.

It led us to believe that there was a specific client need that clearly wasn’t being met by the wider industry. With that in mind, we  launched Divorce Money in the last quarter of 2019 with the remit of providing a professionally prepared report which was not only presentable but also acceptable to the clients, their family lawyers, the mediation services and, more importantly, the courts themselves.

Our MCRs identify potential mortgage borrowings considering the changing landscape of the couple or individual’s financial future following divorce or separation. And let’s not forget that, alongside the technical aspect of getting mortgage affordability assessed, there needs to be an empathetic understanding that this is a daunting time for individuals who may find discussing finances amid the emotional rubble of a failed marriage a difficult thing to do.

When we launched, some people got a bit ahead of themselves and assumed Divorce Money was a regulated firm. It is not, it is merely a marketing initiative which all our brands can take advantage of to help promote a quality service to a marketplace that currently has no real dedicated outlet.

We firmly believe that a business should continually evolve and innovate in order to stay relevant. A client bank needs constant refreshing and expanding otherwise it begins to produce diminishing returns.

And that is the essence of what Divorce Money is all about – helping our company to grow its presence within a competitive sector while delivering a tangible and much needed solution to what is clearly an increasing problem.

We have now begun to roll out our offering across the UK with a series of workshops and seminars to family lawyers and other professionals connected with the matrimonial dispute sector. The response so far has been excellent, with the main feedback confirming the fact that, until now, they didn’t know who to turn to.

And that is, in my opinion, the crux of the matter. Long gone are the days when a mortgage broker can jot an assumed number down on a post-it note and hope it passes muster with a judge. It won’t, and anything short of a detailed report and you will be letting down a client at a time when they may be at their most vulnerable.

Catherine Beaumont, mortgage and protection consultant, London Money