What is a mandate?(in terms of underwriting)

inch_high

As far as I'm aware its some sort of licence type thing that allows you to underwrite mortgages upto "X" amount.A lad at work reckons that we have mandates to underwrite - I work on the intermediary sales centre for Halifax - but I dont think we do.Thing is, the same lad had a job interview with the company where I'm going for one tomorrow, and they asked him if he had a mandate. He said no, but now he thinks he should have said yes cos he underwrites mortgages. We dont really underwrite them though! The computer does that, we just check the payslips etc and tell the computer what they say!

toonfish

you are right, it's the limit to which you are able to make a decision usually. Much less common now with computer based underwriting. In the "good old days" a bank manager or underwriter had a mandate above which they had to refer to someone else.

inch_high

So, I obviously press the buttons that tell the computer to underwrite anything upto £500k, above that goes to a Premier Team, so, could I say I have a mandate to underwrite upto that amount? Or would someone with a mandate have a certificate type thing to confirm it?

homer_j_3

I will try and put it a different way for you.

If I put an application in to you for a client and (in little britain style) "computer says no! " what do you do? Just decline it?

If I was to call you and talk you through the case, do you have the mandate/authority to overrule the computer?

If the answer is no - then you have no mandate whatsoever. If the answer is yes you can, up to what level can you personally agree a case to? That is your mandate.

I am guessing you will not have a £500k mandate but could be wrong.

inch_high

I couldnt override the computer, no. If it was short on income, say, need £200k, we're offereing £195k, I would put a case together with pro's and con's and sent to the Business Assessors (basically, the manual underwriters) who can aprove or decline it...

homer_j_3

then the business assesors have final say and the mandate, not you.

techmob

Hi

apparently my mortgage application has gone to "mandate"

i have no idea what this means?

GMS

Mandate means approval. I worked for a lender with a mandate of £500,000 previously. I could sign off any mortgage up to this amount, anything over this I needed to refer to a holder of the appropriate level of mandate.