Industry-leading personal finance management app Emma has confirmed a new partnership with online mortgage broker Trussle. The Emma app allows users to combine all their bank accounts in one handy place, whilst educating users about areas of their spending where they are being overly wasteful. The app aims to put consumers firmly in control of their hard-earned money again.
Trussle’s mortgage advice, which is available exclusively online, will soon be integrated within the Emma platform. With the Emma app already focused largely on budgeting, monitoring, and saving funds wherever possible, there was a direct synergy between both brands, with Trussle helping Emma users to get the best value mortgage deal for their unique circumstances.
Unlocking “endless opportunities” for Emma users
The Emma app alerts users when they are spending more than they should be on bills and utilities and when they are close to running out of money in their account before payday. Edoardo Moreni, founder and CEO of the Emma platform, said that the app’s ultimate goal is to help users “live a better financial life”. Moreni says that its partnership with Trussle expands its offerings into “real actions in people’s lives”.
It’s hoped that Trussle’s integration will enable Emma users to save money on purchasing their first home or an upcoming remortgage. Ian Larkin, CEO of Trussle, described buying property as one of the “biggest financial commitments” in anyone’s life. Trussle’s exclusively online services will be made available to all Emma users, allowing them to get a clear handle on “how much [they] can afford to save and borrow” prior to making a mortgage application or seeking an agreement in principle with a lender.
Mortgage approvals are said to have been at record levels for the UK in 2020, with the broker experiencing a 154% increase in approval rates during the second half of the year. The West Midlands proved to be a particular mortgage hotspot during this period, registering a 244% rise in approval rates for properties across Birmingham and the Black Country. However, delays in the industry have seen the average time from a mortgage application to completion rise to 134 days.
Trussle has rapidly developed a reputation for intuitive, straight-talking mortgage advice and tools. The brand’s most recent success was its stamp duty calculator, which enabled buyers to estimate how much money they could save on a prospective house purchase during the recent stamp duty holiday. Aside from displaying how much a buyer would spend on stamp duty land tax (SDLT) during and after the holiday, it also highlighted those mortgage lenders that are taking the shortest time to approve mortgage applications and get things moving with the holiday deadline fast approaching.
As more homebuyers and remortgagers adopt digital services like Trussle, the company opted to seek regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to operate as a Directly Authorised (DA) business. In achieving its new DA status, Trussle automatically becomes one of the top 20 biggest mortgage brokers in Britain. Larkin believes this latest step will enable the brand to “deliver on the full potential” of Trussle’s online-only services.