Knowledge Bank has introduced two new criteria categories to its platform, including one to help brokers find lenders who will lend on properties with cladding.

The new categories are “Composite Cladding / EWS1 Form” and “Local Authority Search Indemnity Insurance”.

An estimated 650,000 people are currently living in properties with potentially unsafe cladding, according to a recent report from The Guardian.

Due to issues around potentially unsafe cladding, Knowledge Bank suggested there has been a huge surge in brokers dealing with clients who are “effectively mortgage prisoners”, as they are trapped in unsafe housing while they struggle to remortgage or sell their property – with some lenders hesitant to provide finance.

The other new category to be added to Knowledge Bank’s platform is for indemnity insurance, which helps speed up the mortgage process and can lower costs, as it means the lender does not have to conduct a search on the property.

The criteria search specialist said its new launches come on the back of a record 1.35 million searches on the Knowledge Bank system in 2020.

Knowledge Bank founder and CEO, Nicola Firth, commented: “Supporting brokers is our number one focus. When we see a trend of requests or activity in the market, we immediately look to develop new categories to support this demand, and give brokers access to the information they need to help their clients.

“In the past year, more than any other, Knowledge Bank gained the reputation for being immediately responsive, providing brokers with the information they need, when they need it.”

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