65% of consumers taking a mortgage customer journey between 2020/21 were impacted by COVID. For those buying in 2020, the key impact of COVID was to postpone a purchase, while for those buying in 2021 the main impact was to bring forward a purchase (no doubt influenced by the Stamp Duty holiday). Younger journey takers were the most impacted by COVID.
COVID has re-shaped the mortgage customer journey by:
- Altering the reliance on professional support
- Promoting a virtual journey
- Making the journey harder to navigate
- Encouraging customers to contact their providers
Selected other key findings from the report include
- As the customer journey moves forward from an initial search for mortgage deals to finally arranging the mortgage, so the consumer journey shifts from a virtual journey toward a real journey.
- Mortgages remain the prime source of finance for home purchases. However, comparing journey takers who purchased their homes between 2018 and 2021 and those buying before 2018, indicates that mortgages have declined in importance
- Overall, journey takers see the journey process as running smoothly. However, while most journey takers navigate their journeys without problems, younger journey takers run into more problems.
