At the end of 2022, 48% of brokers surveyed agreed it was a good year for business and better than 2021, despite the challenges faced.

This may have impacted on the feeling of uncertainty amongst brokers which dropped slightly to 67% from 74% last year.

At the halfway mark, 80% of brokers placed more emphasis on continued volatility around interest rates as the key factor that will impact their business in the remainder of 2023 — at the start of the year this was 76%.

The relevance of the cost of living crisis lessened with 66% citing it as having an impact — a decrease from 76% at the start of the year — yet more brokers agreed that clients increasingly lacked confidence with a rise to 40% from 35%.

At H1 2023 43% of brokers felt their landlord clients were not prepared for upcoming EPC changes — an increase of 13% — with 40% believing their clients were ready.

Brokers also had changing sentiments on the movement of the Bank of England base rates.

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At the start of the year 54% believed that the base rate would not rise above 5%, and now 40% believe it will peak above 6%, with only 10% believing it will rise to 5.25%.

According to Crystal data, brokers also began to diversify in response to market challenges with bridging leading the way at 27%, 23% expanded into commercial finance, and 20% into BTL.

This diversification looks set to continue, with 67% of brokers agreeing that they expect to diversify further during the remainder of the year.

The number who plan to work alongside master brokers has also risen from 52% to 63%, citing the complexity of cases; expectation of an increase in second charges; and an increase in clients with adverse credit histories as the main drivers for doing so.

Jo Breeden, MD at Crystal, said: “Our survey has revealed that brokers are still uncertain about the remainder of 2023, just as they were at the start of the year.

“[With] that said, many have used the opportunity to diversify into new markets to bolster their businesses.

“While the wider residential housing market is in decline, this presents opportunities for the resilient broker that is prepared to investigate new markets – such as bridging, commercial finance and complex BTL.”