Anyone know when EBS started and finished using mortgage brokers?

Great website, wish I discovered it years ago. Anyway, I am wondering would anyone know when the EBS started and finished using mortgage brokers? I understand they historically used to deal direct rather than through a broker, dealt with brokers during the celtic tiger years and they currently deal direct? Please correct me if I am wrong. Thank you for any replies.

They nearly always used brokers but transferred many of their smaller branches to tied agents back around 1996. They started with a lot of the country branches and then the smaller branches around Dublin gradually became tied agents. Eventually all of their branches became tied agents. This is what you have today.

...plus through their Haven channel, EBS still use mortgage brokers.

Kimmagegirl, thanks for your reply. There are about 70 odd EBS branches around the countrey today...I assume this is what you mean by tied agents? I think the EBS website does not describe them as such but I assume this is what they are?

rob oyle said:

...plus through their Haven channel, EBS still use mortgage brokers.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. I believe that during 2007, a wholly owned subsidiary of EBS was established, its part of AIB and that Haven Mortgages focusses exclusively on the broker market as a separate lender in its own right.

However, I am wondering about EBS mortgages sold through intermediaries such as estate agents (e.g. the financial arm of estate agents) during the credit bubble. It is known the Educational Building Society had humble beginnings which reflected the role played by school teachers in its establishment. What I want to find out is when it started selling mortgages, specifically commercial mortgages, through intermediaries (like the financial services salesperson in the local estate agents)? I understand the EBS itself does not lend for commercial mortgages today, so when did it stop...perhaps in 2007?

The tied agents today are paid commission rather than a salary for introducing business to the EBS. Many people do not realise that when they are visiting an EBS branch they are actually dealing with a commission paid individual rather than an original EBS outlet.
Back in about 1996 the mortgage department was split in to home loans and commercial loans with a dedicated team dealing with commercial loans. They had dipped their toe in the water by introducing Top Up loans a few years before this, allowing individuals to borrow against the equity in their homes. Initially this started as Home Improvement loans, sometimes with a slightly higher rate than the home loan. These loans sat side by side with the main Home Loan with a separate repayment plan. This then was extended to Car Loans, Holiday Loans etc with an interest rate of up to 1% higher than the Home Loan.

Kimmagegirl said:

Back in about 1996 the mortgage department was split in to home loans and commercial loans with a dedicated team dealing with commercial loans. They had dipped their toe in the water by introducing Top Up loans a few years before this,

Click to expand...

Thanks for that. So in other words any commercial mortgages arranged in '04/ early 05 were not arranged by a dedicated team dealing with commercial loans. Perhaps that explains why a commercial loan processed then was done on a home loan application form.

What I want to find out, please, is
(a) when did it start selling commercial mortgages (eg buy-to-let mortgages)?
(b) when did it start selling commercial mortgages (eg buy to lets) through intermediaries (like the financial services salesperson in the local estate agents)?
(c) I understand the EBS itself does not lend for commercial mortgages today (only home loans etc) so when did it stop these type of mortgages through intermediaries? When did it stop arranging these type of mortgages direct (through its branch network)?

respectableobserver said:

Thanks for that. So in other words any commercial mortgages arranged in '04/ early 05 were not arranged by a dedicated team dealing with commercial loans. Perhaps that explains why a commercial loan processed then was done on a home loan application form.

Click to expand...

Not necessarily.

Kimmagegirl said:

Not necessarily.

Click to expand...

ok, so even though you said " in about 1996 the mortgage department was split in to home loans and commercial loans with a dedicated team dealing with commercial loans", it is not necessarily so that any commercial mortgages arranged in '04/ early 05 were not arranged by a dedicated (commercial mortgage) team? I thought you implied there was no "dedicated team dealing with commercial loans" prior to about '07?

Thanks for reading my post and taking the time to reply. What I really asked and am interested in are the 3 queries above, a,b and c. Hopefully someone can help. Thank you.