AI Experts · Mortgage Broker
Your AI assistant for mortgage advice — it does the research, you stay in control.
Mortgage advice is more than lender tables. PrivateNode coordinates nine specialists so the research is grounded: MCOB conduct rules and Consumer Duty from the FCA Handbook, government schemes (Lifetime ISA, Shared Ownership, First Homes), SDLT for first-time buyers and additional dwellings, the affordability and BTL maths with full workings, AML source-of-funds, and the public UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook (Part 2) conveyancing requirements. Built to assist mortgage brokers, not replace them: you keep the advice and the client relationship; it does the legwork. Lender lending criteria change constantly, so treat any criteria summary as a starting point and verify against the lender.
The lender panel
From the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook (Part 2), prioritising the most active lenders, with coverage expanding. Plus published lending criteria from intermediary panels.
The UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook sets out each lender's instructions to conveyancers. It is separate from a lender's lending and affordability criteria, which we cover under lender criteria guidance.
What this covers
01
4,212 indexed sections from 39 lenders' UK Finance Handbook Part 2 (property types accepted, deposit source rules, leasehold terms, new-build warranty, EWS1, identity, valuation) plus 3,441 published lending-criteria entries from 22 lenders covering self-employed and contractor income, LTV bands, acceptable income types, and property restrictions, including specialist lenders Kensington, Pepper, Precise, Foundation, Vida and Bluestone.
02
1,236 sections from the FCA Handbook Mortgages and Home Finance Sourcebook: responsible lending (MCOB 11), advised vs execution-only, suitability, disclosure, vulnerable customers (MCOB 2A), Consumer Duty alignment.
03
FCA Register lookups for brokers, mortgage clubs, packagers: confirm regulated permissions, AR status, principal firm, geographic scope before passing a case down the chain.
04
Post-April-2025 rate table, first-time buyer relief (£300k nil, £500k cap), additional dwelling 5% surcharge, non-resident 2% surcharge. Deterministic calculator with the applicable SDLTM chapter.
05
Contractor vs employee status under ERA 1996 and ITEPA 2003 (IR35 off-payroll working rules, ss.48–61). SA302 and tax calculation guidance from HMRC. Lender handbook entries on acceptable income types. Paired with the Employment Law specialist for contested status cases.
06
MLR 2017 reg 28 customer due diligence, source-of-funds (deposit) and source-of-wealth (lifetime accumulation). OFSI sanctions screening on every applicant. PEP and high-risk-country handling.
07
FCA Consumer Duty guidance (FG22/5 + PS22/9): fair value, consumer understanding, consumer support, products & services outcomes. Board reporting requirements. Protection gap obligations and FCA thematic review expectations.
08
Lifetime ISA, Help to Buy ISA, Shared Ownership, First Homes, Right to Buy, affordable home ownership schemes. Eligibility rules, deposit interactions, withdrawal conditions, and staircasing guidance, all from gov.uk.
Where we play
PrivateNode is the cited reasoning layer. It runs beside your sourcing and origination tools, it does not replace them.
What we handle
Source-cited, on EU-sovereign infrastructure.
Works alongside your stack
We sit beside these tools, we do not replace them.
PrivateNode draws on authoritative sources: legislation, regulator handbooks, and lender publications, refreshed on a structured schedule and checked weekly for changes. Because lender requirements and regulatory rules rarely change day to day, this gives you reliable, cited general guidance you can act on and document.
For live product rates and exact maximum-borrowing figures, confirm in your real-time sourcing and affordability tools. Every source carries a last-updated date, so you always know how current the guidance is.
Sources last refreshed .
Specialists at work
One question is decomposed and routed in parallel via ask_mortgage_expert. Each specialist returns cited fragments; the orchestrator synthesises one answer with lender shortlist, MCOB conduct obligations, income / deposit treatment, and a next-steps checklist.
Primary specialist. UK Finance Handbook Part 2 (4,212 sections, 39 lenders) plus 3,441 published lending-criteria entries from 22 lenders: income types, LTV bands, self-employed rules, property types, BTL stress tests.
MCOB sourcebook: 1,236 conduct-rule sections covering responsible lending, advised process, suitability, disclosure, vulnerable customers and Consumer Duty.
Live lookups for brokers, mortgage clubs and packagers: regulated permissions, AR status, principal firm, geographic scope, supervision history.
SDLT calculations with the applicable SDLTM chapter. FTB relief, additional-dwelling surcharge, non-resident surcharge, linked transactions, matrimonial transfers.
Completion mechanics: LRA 2002 first registration, AP1 / TR1 procedure, lease length, ground rent, building-safety status. Drives the back end of the file.
MLR 2017, POCA 2002, OFSI consolidated sanctions list, FATF guidance. Source-of-funds and source-of-wealth tests, SAR triggers, tipping-off.
Income evidence and employment status: Employment Rights Act 1996, IR35, contractor vs employee tests. Powers the self-employed / contractor underwriting path.
Recent FCA / FOS / court decisions on mortgage conduct, suitability disputes, Consumer Duty breaches, repossession proceedings. Precedent for edge cases.
UK GDPR, DPA 2018, PECR and DUAA 2025. Client data handling for fact-finds, AML evidence, retention and breach response.
By the numbers
9
Specialists co-routed per question
4,212
Lender criteria across 39 lenders: income, LTV, property, age
1,236
MCOB conduct-rule sections from the FCA Handbook
A typical case
Day 0–3
The Mortgage specialist screens income, deposit and target property against 39 lenders' UK Finance Handbook requirements and the published lending criteria of 22 lenders. FCA Regulation surfaces MCOB 11 responsible-lending duties and MCOB 4 advised-process requirements. Employment Law disambiguates contractor vs employee status where it matters for income treatment.
Day 3–7
The Mortgage specialist matches the client against the precise lender's criterion set, including any flags around credit profile, employment continuity, or property non-standardness. FCA Regulation issues the MCOB 4.7 / ESIS disclosure checklist. FCA Register confirms the broker, mortgage club and any AR chain are properly permissioned.
Day 7–14
Income evidence is assembled: payslips, P60s, SA302s, accountant references for the self-employed; contract day-rate calculations for fixed-term contractors. AML opens source-of-funds checking on the deposit (six-month traceability). Sanctions screening on every applicant and connected party.
Day 14–21
Underwriter callbacks tracked against the lender's published criterion set. Property specialist verifies building-safety status, EWS1 acceptance, non-standard construction triggers. Case Law surfaces recent FOS decisions where similar profiles were declined or upheld.
Day 21–42
Offer issued (typically valid 3–6 months). Tax & HMRC specialist calculates SDLT with the applicable relief matrix; the Conveyancing specialist confirms LRA 2002 first-registration steps and lender requirements at completion (UK Finance Handbook Part 2). Final lender drawdown checks completed.
Workflows
Each is one question to the orchestrator. The system picks the right specialists, calls the right calculator, surfaces the right citations.
01
Residential
Deposit source, target property type, and leasehold terms checked against 39 lenders' UK Finance Handbook entries. MCOB 11 responsible-lending duties applied; MCOB 4 advised-vs-execution-only path documented. Help to Buy ISA / LISA interaction flagged. SDLT FTB relief calculation included.
Specialists
02
Investment
BTL property type restrictions checked against 39 lenders' handbook entries. BTL profitability calculator with ICR stress test, gross and net yield, and annual cashflow analysis. SDLT 5% additional-dwelling surcharge from 31 Oct 2024. JMLSG AML guidance for BTL source-of-funds. Consumer Duty compliance for investment mortgage advice.
Specialists
03
Specialist
CCJ, default, IVA, bankruptcy and missed-payment history screened against the published lending criteria of specialist lenders now indexed: Kensington, Pepper Money, Precise, Foundation Home Loans, Vida and Bluestone, alongside UK Finance Handbook Part 2 conveyancing requirements. FCA Register confirms lender and packager permissions at firm level. MCOB 4 and 11 disclosure tightened on adverse cases.
Specialists
04
Income
Sole trader vs limited-company director vs day-rate contractor: employment status analysis under ERA 1996 and ITEPA 2003 (IR35 off-payroll working rules ss.48–61). HMRC SA302 and tax calculation guidance. Lender handbook entries on acceptable income types. Employment-law cross-references where the client's status is contested.
Specialists
05
Refinance
Existing lender product transfer (same-lender retention rate) vs full re-mortgage to a new lender. MCOB 4.7A advised process or execution-only routes. ERC handling, panel-solicitor requirements, valuation type (AVM, drive-by, full). Capital raising for home improvement or debt consolidation.
Specialists
06
Specialist
Lifetime mortgage vs Retirement Interest-Only. MCOB 8 / 8A / 8B specifics. Equity Release Council standards (right to remain, no negative equity, downsizing protection). Vulnerable-customer treatment under MCOB 2A. Independent legal advice requirement.
Specialists
07
Specialist
Regulated bridging (residential, owner-occupied) vs unregulated (commercial / investment). MCOB 12.4 specifics for regulated bridging. Exit strategy underwriting: sale, re-mortgage, refinance. Light vs heavy refurb. First charge vs second charge.
Specialists
08
Edge case
Skilled Worker, Spouse, HSMP, Student visa holders. Immigration status and right-to-reside analysis. Lender handbook entries on identity documents and residency verification per lender (e.g. EU ID cards, Residence Permits, Home Office documents). JMLSG enhanced due diligence for overseas source-of-wealth. OFSI sanctions screening on overseas donors.
Specialists
Live from production
"For a self-employed applicant with 18 months of SA302 evidence and a 10% deposit on a flat above commercial premises, Nationwide requires two years' trading (last year-end within 18 months), so 18 months falls short of its standard route. Skipton and Virgin Money criteria are surfaced alongside, with their self-employed evidence and mixed-use property rules cited. MCOB 11.6 responsible-lending stress test applied."
Question: Which lenders will accept a self-employed applicant with 18 months trading history buying a flat above a shop with 10% deposit?
Returned verbatim from the production API on 2026-05-20.
Your firm's data stays in your VPS. The nine specialists are shared infrastructure with EU-only hosting. Cited, calculated, current.
Tools it carries
Every expert on the team carries the same shared tools, so the Mortgage Broker can run the numbers and handle your documents inside one answer.
Exact UK figures with full workings: SDLT, affordability, BTL, CGT, income tax, redundancy and more. Deterministic, no guesswork.
Drafts and reviews documents: contracts, letters, reports, mortgage offers. Every expert can draft and review.
Ask the Mortgage Broker directly, or just describe your situation. Node+ is the orchestrator: it reads the question, calls the Mortgage Broker alongside any other expert the matter touches, and brings their work back as one cited answer.
How Node+ worksThe team, on call
Cited to current UK sources, running on your own server. From £299/month, typically live within 48 hours.