Smart Money People has released its H1 2025 Mortgage Lender Benchmark covering broker opinions on UK mortgage lenders for the first half of 2025.
The bi-annual study has found that the overall satisfaction with mortgage lenders increased by 0.05 points to 4.22 out of 5 – the highest level since 2020.
The latest edition features a Broker Experience Index – which combines multiple satisfaction and service metrics, such as speed, service, digital tools and support – and this debuts at 70.6. This metric has been created to reflect the full broker journey.
The building society sector has the top-rated Broker Experience Index of 71.5, although mainstream lenders follow closely at 71.4.
The average Net Promoter Score (NPS) for all lenders rose to 40.9, up 5.0 points from H2 2024.
Halifax was named the best mainstream lender by brokers, while Principality Building Society was named the best building society lender, the latter retaining their status from H2 2024.
In addition, the best later life lender was Canada Life, with Pepper Money recognised as the top specialist lender – also retaining their H2 2024 position.
A change to the top spot though was recorded in specialist buy-to-let, as BM Solutions came out as top lender in this category. Meanwhile, Allica Bank were the top bridging/commercial lender and LendInvest were recognised as the best digital-first lender.
Jake Sandford, head of data and analytics at Smart Money People, said: “It’s extremely encouraging to see that overall satisfaction across the industry remains high, which is undoubtedly great news for brokers and borrowers alike.
“To reflect the importance of the wider broker journey across multiple touch points when working with lenders, our new Broker Experience Index provides revealing insights on the individual elements of the journey – and shows which lenders are managing to join everything up to provide the best broker experience.”
Daniel O’Connor, chief operating officer at LendInvest, commented: “All of us at LendInvest are thrilled by the results from the latest Smart Money People Mortgage Lender Benchmark.
"Being named the best digital-first lender, best for online systems, and earning a five-star rating reflects the strength of the partnerships we’ve built and the trust we’ve earned by delivering quick, simple and efficient experiences, consistently.
"I’m proud to work with a team at LendInvest that shows unwavering commitment to balancing tech-led solutions with a human touch and deep expertise to drive those experiences for brokers and their clients.
"This recognition confirms we’re on the right track, but we’re not stopping here. We remain laser-focused on building the future of property finance.”
