Progress over perfection: how do we move later life lending forward?

The later life lending market doesn’t need to have every answer today. But it does need to keep moving forward.

Following our Living More debate at the RSA, we sat down with Stephanie Charman, Chief Executive of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, to hear what stood out to her from the day and what she hopes comes next for the industry.

For Stephanie, one of the biggest takeaways was the level of engagement in the room. There was real passion for the sector, but also a recognition that things aren’t perfect and there’s more we can do.

At the centre of that change? The customer.

Are we asking customers what they actually want?

One of Stephanie’s key points was simple: when we design customer journeys and ways of working, how often do we actually ask customers whether they work for them?

We can spend a lot of time as an industry deciding what a good journey should look like. But if we want it to work for customers, they need to be part of that conversation too.

As Stephanie pointed out, if a journey doesn’t work for them, they’ll find another way that does.

For later life lending, where people can come to advisers with different circumstances and needs, keeping that customer lens throughout is particularly important.

Collaboration needs to go further

Another theme throughout the conversation was collaboration.

Stephanie spoke about the need to get into the detail of what good looks like in practice. Referring a customer elsewhere is one thing, but creating a journey that works from beginning to end requires people across the industry to work together.

Lenders, advisers and trade bodies all have a part to play.

Ultimately, we’re working towards the same thing: making it easier for customers to find the right pathway for their circumstances, supported by good quality advice.

Progress over perfection

Perhaps the simplest takeaway from the conversation was also one of the strongest: progress over perfection.

Change doesn’t have to happen overnight.

For Stephanie, it’s about making incremental changes, seeing what works and being prepared to learn and adapt when something doesn’t.

Trying something that doesn’t work shouldn’t mean going back to how things have always been done. It should give us something to learn from and a better idea of what to try next.

We might not be able to map out exactly where the industry will be in 12 months. But we can make sure that, by then, we’ve tried more, learnt more and taken meaningful steps forward.

So, what comes next?

The conversation at the RSA showed there’s no shortage of appetite for change.

The challenge now is turning that intent into action and continuing to make improvements that work for the people at the heart of the industry: our customers.

We don’t need to wait until we have the perfect answer.

Sometimes, it’s about taking the next step in the right direction.

Watch our full Living More conversation with Stephanie Charman, Chief Executive of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, to hear more about customer-led change, industry collaboration and why progress matters more than perfection.