"Please provide the most recent payslip and an explanation of the transfer on the 14th"
The case was submitted on Monday. On Wednesday the underwriter posts a note in the lender portal asking for the latest payslip, which has just been issued, and an explanation of a large transfer on one of the bank statements. The broker sees the note on Thursday morning.
They email the client. The client sends the payslip that evening but misses the question about the transfer. The broker asks again. On Monday the explanation arrives, the broker writes it up and uploads everything. The underwriter picks it up on Wednesday. A week has gone on two small requests.
Why queries take so long to clear
Most of the delay is not the client or the underwriter. It is the gaps between: the time before the broker sees the request, the time the request sits in the client's inbox, the partial reply, the second request. Each gap is a day or two, and the case waits in the underwriter's queue each time it goes back.
- Queries posted in lender portals and seen late.
- Requests passed to clients in long emails, and partly answered.
- Several queries in one note, with some missed.
- Documents returned by email and uploaded to the lender by hand.
- No list of open queries across the brokerage.
Explanations add their own delay. When the underwriter wants a client's explanation of a transaction or a gap in employment, the broker has to get the client's words, write them up sensibly and send them on, which is hard to do quickly by email.
What slow replies cost
| Gap | Effect on the case |
|---|---|
| Broker sees the query a day late | A day lost before anything happens |
| Client misses part of the request | Another round, often days |
| Reply uploaded to lender late | Case rejoins the underwriter's queue later |
| No overview of open queries | Some cases wait unnoticed |
Underwriting is often the stage with the most uncertainty for clients, and delays here are when they get most anxious. In a chain, a week lost to queries can put a completion date at risk.
The query handling we build
- Underwriter requests are caught from lender emails and, where offered, lender data routes, and matched to the case.
- Each request is split into separate items, so a note with three questions becomes three tasks.
- Items for the client are sent as a clear, short request with a secure upload link and, for explanations, a simple text box.
- Uploads are checked for obvious issues such as the wrong month or a missing page before the broker sees them.
- The broker reviews what came back, adds any wording, and sends it to the lender, with the response logged.
- Open queries are listed across the brokerage by age, and anything waiting on the client gets a reminder.
The system organises the query and the reply. What to say to the underwriter, and how, is the broker's decision.
After it is in place
Queries are seen the day they arrive. Clients get a short, clear list of exactly what is needed, and answer everything at once. Replies go back to the lender quickly and completely. And the brokerage can see all open queries at once, so none are left waiting.
Clients feel the difference as well. A short request that says exactly what the lender needs and why is far less alarming than a forwarded portal note full of lender shorthand, and a calm client answers faster.
Is this happening to your cases?
- Underwriter requests are found a day or more late.
- Clients answer part of a request and miss the rest.
- Several rounds of emails for one query.
- You cannot list all open underwriter queries now.
- Cases sit in underwriting longer than they need to.