Fintech has already disrupted the banking industry, and is now treading in new territory by making its entrance into the $14 trillion mortgage lending market. To put things in perspective, the mortgage market is about 14 times larger than Student Loans (about $1 trillion). Despite the massive size of the mortgage market, there hasn’t been much disruption in this space, allowing banks to claim major market share. Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and US Bank are the key dominant players. However, mortgage lending from commercial banks have significantly dropped from 74% in 2007 to 52% in 2014.
There are currently a handful of fintech players making its way in the mortgage market such as Radius Financial Group, Clara, and Lenda by offering a digital mortgage solution. With the help from a few other home loan mortgage companies, Radius was able to close six loans without paper documents.
The mortgage loan process can be tedious, frustrating, and never-ending. I think there is great potential for automation in this space and believe there is a growing demand for electronic mortgage solutions. According to a recent survey conducted by J.D. Power, “20% of buyers of all ages weren’t happy with their lender, providing further support that there is demand for a new type of mortgage service.” Automation will make it easier and more convenient for home buyers and sellers since it will cut down on time, fees, and face-to-face contact.
This was a very interesting article. I feel that fintech firms will begin to invade more and more markets involving anything financial. As for mortgages, I believe it will help make the mortgage lending market more efficient by inciting competition.