Habito wants mortgage journeys to be pain free from the get go. So, we’ve launched a mortgage comparison tool which lets you play around with options before signing up. Here, Jess Warren, Principal Product Manager at Habito, explains what it’s all about (and why you’ll love it). 

Who’s the comparison tool for?

We designed this comparison tool to help all customers (whether you’re looking to buy a home, remortgage, or interested in buy to let products). It’s ideal for the early stages of the process because it uses our awesome tech to give people a taste of their affordability and rates right now. 

Why did you decide to build it?

This tool has existed for a while, but it was somewhat unloved! We noticed that lots of people would visit the page, but it wasn’t giving them what they needed. 

To work out what customers wanted, we listened. People often ask our mortgage experts to show comparisons between deals and so we got to work, using our own knowledge and research of other industries (like insurance), to design this new and improved tool.

How does it work?

It’s built to help customers at the very start of their mortgage process, so you don’t have to be signed up to check it out. 

Like everything at Habito, we wanted it to be super easy to use. That’s why we stripped back the amount of stuff customers have to initially fill out, to the bare minimum needed to generate results (like income, property value and deposit amount). Once at the results stage, the person can play around with other details (like the length of their fixed term) to see the impact on cost. 

We know that people have different priorities, so the results can be sorted in four ways - always lowest to highest:

  • Cost over the total deal period
  • Monthly repayments
  • Interest rates
  • Fees

If a customer likes the look of a deal, they can log it by clicking ‘compare’. They can then change the filters and choose another to log alongside it. This results in a page where both deals are lined up against each other, giving the person a chance to compare them directly.

The final step is simple. By selecting ‘apply’, customers start their journey with Habito where a personal broker will get the ball rolling (as always, totally for free). 

Why will customers love it?

We tested this tool before launching, and one of things that people found most useful was being able to directly compare deals with different initial terms (like a 2 year fixed deal alongside a 5 year fixed deal). 

Other scenarios include someone thinking about holding a little back from their deposit (maybe for renovations), expecting a pay rise, or thinking about getting a mortgage jointly with someone else. Everything can be played with!

Why is it better than other comparison tools out there?

There are a couple of factors that set this tool apart from others:

  • It scans the whole of the market, not just a section of it. We search over 20,000+ mortgages from over 90 lenders to show you real deals that they’re offering customers right now. 
  • It shows you the total cost of each mortgage over the initial term which includes interest, fees and any cashback offered. This gives more accuracy on which deal is truly the cheapest.

What’s next for the comparison tool?

We’re keen to learn more about people using it, and what their thoughts are. We’ll continue doing our own research but welcome any feedback, good or bad!

Check out our mortgage comparison tool here. Or if you’d rather, talk to a broker today.