We have undertaken this research with the aim of developing a better understanding of levels of business and financial confidence among self-employed people in the UK. The most important lesson to draw from the findings of this survey is the resilience and – against all odds – the growing confidence among the self-employed, despite the serious challenges facing the UK economy.
The willingness within this group to embrace new technology should encourage specialist financial services providers to focus on using a combination of technology, data and underwriting expertise to develop and deliver products and services that meet the varied needs of this growing market. The range of mortgage solutions available to the self-employed market is growing, but the pace of this growth must keep up with the ongoing growth in self-employment. More lenders will need to develop more innovative solutions to meet the needs of this growing segment of the UK workforce. The number of ‘non-standard’ borrowing cases is increasing and will continue to increase for the foreseeable future. If mainstream lenders continue to demonstrate a lack of appetite for this type of lending, it is up to providers like us, alongside the rest of the specialist lending community, to continue to seek to understand and serve this evolving market.