The mortgage market has changed over the past year and a half. The European Central Bank’s decision to raise rates has made mortgages more expensive, making it harder to find a loan that is cheaper or closer to what was previously available. Casavo realized this and launched a service that turns it into a mortgage consultant: Casavo Hipotecas. A free service for their clients, with which they promise to find the perfect mortgage for each client.

Francisco Sierra, Casavo’s general manager for Southern Europe, assures that this search will be fast and efficient. He also adds that in the current climate with such high rates, using this mortgage advisor makes more sense since he won’t have to go bank after bank looking for a good deal. Regarding the current situation, Sierra argues that “loans are not expensive (…), what didn’t make sense were the previous prices.”

He acknowledges that prices are higher but are in line with interest rates and inflation “in the current economic context.” Another thing is that they may have grown quickly, but the manager predicts that we are entering a period of stability: “We don’t expect it to go up or down in the short term.”- he notes and decisively adds that now is a good time to get a mortgage, but “but also not the best, because this time has already passed.”

Casavo is a proptech, or technology company with a digital platform for buying and selling homes. “It’s a marketplace, an alternative to the idealist or real estate agent.”, notes the CEO of Casavo. Up to this point, he has bought, renovated and sold. Thanks to their activities, they have the support of banks and mortgage intermediaries. And then they realized that they could speed up the search for mortgages for their clients. The service was launched in June in Italy and Spain, and in a couple of months 4,000 requests were received, of which 1,000 were in our country.

This service is supported by 14 national organizations that offer Casavo mortgages or where a proptech company is looking for them. Among these subjects are Banco Santander, CaixaBank, ING, Evo Banco, Ibercaja, among many. Casavo Hipotecas is registered with the Bank of Spain, and Sierra explains that the aim of this proposal is to “provide the best service for our clients.”

This service began to take shape when European monetary policy changed. “When interest rates started to rise, we saw an urgent need to get a good mortgage at a good price,” Sierra explains. The situation is changing, and now customers have a need to maintain the conditions offered by banks. “They had a pre-approved mortgage and even made a down payment but didn’t keep it.”- he notes.

At the time, clients were asking for more time or solutions, so “it was obvious that we had to help them find better terms and do it quickly.” Currently, there are many banks offering different mortgage loans: now there are fixed, mixed, variable… “It is no longer a question of price or speed of what we offer, it is a question of simplicity and explanation of all conditions”Sierra explains. So the standard service of finding the best mortgage is free for customers, but if they ask for something more, such as more than 80% financing or having very specific features, it comes with a price.

Thus, Casavo does the work that the client would have to do, since, as the manager notes, you need to be aware of events and constantly contact the banks so as not to miss the best option. Moreover, they are very clear: “There is no one-size-fits-all mortgage. “Everyone needs an individual.” Therefore, he adds that the main thing is to know well what banks offer and understand the client profile.

Clients come to Casavo looking for housing and also looking for a mortgage. “The mortgage part is an addition to the real estate transaction,” Sierra says, but emphasizes that 30 to 40% of clients who receive mortgage advice do not buy a home. “They came to us because they saw an apartment, but then either it didn’t suit them, or they found another one and are left looking for a better mortgage,” he explains.

For Francisco Sierra, the most important thing is “This is to make the process faster and easier and achieve the most competitive price on the market.” An average of 30 days passes from the time a client contacts the final mortgage to close, although it can be longer. “There is a process of assessment, comparison, indecision. This means adapting to the client’s time, and not being the fastest,” the manager concludes.