The second charge market saw the biggest shake up in search terms across the industry via Knowledge Bank in December.

The two most searched for terms in the market were for ‘maximum loan to value’ and ‘child benefit’.

The next highest searched criteria by brokers in the second charge space was ‘defaults – unsatisfied’, which the criteria search specialist says suggests that clients with a history of missing payments are looking to take out a second mortgage.

‘Self-employed with one year of accounts’ was among the top five most searched terms in the second charge market for the first time since July 2020.

Interest in the maximum LTV clients can borrow has been a constant for most of this year across the mortgage markets, Knowledge Bank says, as lenders have reduced their appetite for risk in response to the pandemic.

However, November and December were the first months since the pandemic began that maximum LTV was not among the top searched terms in the residential market. Knowledge Bank says this is due to lender confidence returning, with 90 per cent LTV mortgages being brought back by Aldermore, Furness Building Society, Barclays, Saffron for Intermediaries and NatWest in December.

‘Furloughed worker’ and ‘Soft footprints at the decision in principle (DiP)’ stage were u of interest for brokers and their clients in the residential market. Both of these criteria featured in the top five most searched terms, as they did in November.

With the Help to Buy scheme being amended from 15 December 2020, there was a huge urgency for brokers looking to help their clients to secure a mortgage before the deadline so it is unsurprising that it was the fourth most searched for criteria in December.

In the bridging market lending to limited companies reached the top five searched terms for the first time since May 2019.

‘Heavy refurbishment’ was included in the top five searched terms in the bridging market for the first time since September 2020.

Knowledge Bank lender relationship manager Matthew Corker says: “The market is again shifting quickly in response to the changing environment. Confidence has been building with the number of 90 per cent LTV products available increasing in the residential market. This confidence may have been due to the approval of the vaccines and it remains to be seen if the latest lockdown will dent this fragile confidence.

“The increase in interest in defaults in the second charge market shows there is a trend of those with missed payments potentially looking to secure debt against their property. This combined with the interest in soft-footprints and furlough shows there are a lot of brokers working with clients who may be struggling financially.

“With another lockdown, lenders are certain to continue adapting criteria to keep up with the evolving market. It is now physically impossible for any mortgage broker to keep all the different criteria in their heads. So, it is now more important than ever for brokers to use a comprehensive criteria search system to ensure they can provide their clients with best advice – and evidence that they have done so.”