Consumers of all ages are desirous of a fully digital, online mortgage experience, a recent survey conducted by Velocify shows.
That includes using online portals as well as alternative communication channels such as chat and text to complete the mortgage process.
The survey of more than 500 consumers who received a purchase mortgage or refinanced a mortgage over the past 10 years shows that borrowers are highly desirous of self-service websites, especially during the research stage of getting a mortgage.
However, as they progress through the application and processing stages, borrowers prefer an increasing amount of help from mortgage professionals through a variety of communication channels, including chat, phone, text and email, the survey finds.
As one might expect, millennials (under age 35) are more desirous of self-serve options, as well as the use of chat and text, as they move through the mortgage process than baby boomers (over age 55).
However, baby boomers embraced technology more than expected. Boomers were three times more likely to think technology improved the loan process when they were provided an online portal.
“The most interesting discovery was not how borrower behaviors have evolved, but where they are headed,” says Nick Hedges, president and CEO of Velocify, a provider of sales lead acceleration software to the mortgage industry, in a release. “The trend line in our data shows that all borrowers, regardless of age, have a strong preference for more online and digital interaction with their lender.
“To succeed in this environment, lenders have to put the borrower at the center, which means an easy interface that offers transparency into the entire loan lifecycle, but with humans behind it,” he adds.
The full survey results are packaged into a report titled, “The Digital Mortgage Experience: A Study of Shifting Borrower Expectations.”