Lenders, panel and loan offer · Comparison
Online bank mortgage: for which applications is the branch-free channel an advantage
Pricing grid, processing, collateral, derogation: six criteria to tell whether your application benefits from a branch-free bank, or will get stuck there.
The branch-free channel is an advantage for an application where every line fits into a box: stable salaried income, traceable down payment, standard property, standard supporting documents. It is fast and regular there, without being inherently cheaper. An atypical application risks getting stuck there: no intermediate level there supports an exception, and the lending limits are the same as in a branch.
By Sandy MASCART, mandataire d'intermédiaire en opérations de banque et en services de paiement ORIAS 26000541 sous le mandat de CDV PATRIMOINE & ASSURANCE (ORIAS 14005573)
Key points
- A branch-free institution is not inherently cheaper: the lending limits of the High Council apply to all lenders, regardless of the channel.
- The absence of a network removes the intermediate level that supports an exception: an atypical application is handled by the rule there, not by advocacy.
- The more standard the supporting documents are, the more this channel suits you; a non-standard document, perfectly regular, can block an entirely digital flow.
- Everything is written down there, which is a real advantage: requiring that every condition appears in the contractual document offers better protection than an oral exchange.
- Nothing prevents you from pursuing both channels in parallel, subject to one strict condition: only one submission per institution, never two through different channels.
An online bank does not naturally lend at a lower cost: it has removed the level that can approve an exception. A standard file? The channel is fast. An atypical file? It gets blocked. The context: lenders, panel and loan offer.
Home loan at an online bank: cheaper?
Not by nature. Without branches, its costs are lower and certain segments are more aggressive. But it is your file that opens a line in the rate table, and the trade-offs are compared like the interest rate.
Reading a grid: the bank rate table.
Same lending limits, with or without a counter
The two limits set by the High Council apply to every lender.
Critère d'octroi imposé aux établissements de crédit et aux sociétés de financement. L'assurance emprunteur entre dans l'assiette par renvoi au coût total du crédit, non par une mention expresse du texte.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Décision D-HCSF-2021-7, art. 1er — Légifrance
La maturité est la somme du différé et de la période d'amortissement, et non l'amortissement seul.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Décision D-HCSF-2021-7, art. 1er — Légifrance
They are added to the specific criteria of each lender (the debt-to-income ratio).
The real difference: no one to carry an exception
In a branch network, an atypical file moves from the advisor to a committee: it is carried (the families of lenders). Online, a score and a central service handle a flow: fast, without a defender.
Six criteria for choosing
| Criterion | Lender without a branch network | Branch network | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing grid | Published grid, explicit terms | Internal grid, room for negotiation | The exact line your profile qualifies for |
| Processing | Standardised documents, refusal if a document deviates from the format | Deviations explained orally | What happens if a document does not have the expected form |
| Authority to deviate | Centralised, rarely accessible | Distributed, with an identified contact | Who can advocate for your application |
| Counterparties | Fewer, rarely negotiable | More numerous, negotiable | Their total cost |
| Traceability | Everything is in writing, non-nominal contact | Nominal contact, written confirmation to be requested | Written proof of what is accepted |
| Atypical application | Outside the framework, outside financing | Handled by exception, if someone advocates for it | An internal avenue for appeal |
- Standard documents (pay slips, tax notices, bank statements): the online channel serves you. Handwritten attestation, professional cash box, foreign proof of income: they block the process. The same applies to an application without a permanent contract.
- Everything is in writing: have each step confirmed, and require each condition to be included in the contract.
- The authority to deviate exists everywhere, but someone must trigger it:
L'assiette est la production du trimestre civil, en montant et non en nombre de dossiers. Ce n'est pas un droit individuel : un dossier peut être éligible à être logé dans cette marge, la décision appartient à l'établissement.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Décision D-HCSF-2021-7, art. 2 — Légifrance
- Counterparties: calculate them over the duration of the loan (account domiciliation and counterparties), and have it written down what happens if a condition ceases.
Is your application suited to an online bank?
Yes: stable salaries, traceable equity, a standard property, no urgency.
No: recent self-employed income, mobility, an atypical property or one poorly rated in the energy performance certificate, multiple loans. A refusal is more final there: no tier re-examines it. See also specialist lenders.
The two channels in parallel
One institution, one applicant: a duplicate damages the application (mortgage intermediary or direct bank, online or local mortgage intermediary). Begin where the application fits the criteria: the rapid response serves as a point of comparison.
Compare your application with the two channels by telephone.
Create your application and have your application read before choosing the channel.
Sources
Read next
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- Mortgage intermediary or direct bank: an honest comparison, and the five cases where I advise against using an intermediary Intermediary or direct bank: what each brings, what neither can promise, and the five cases where going to your bank alone is sufficient.
- Mortgage without a permanent contract: fixed-term contracts, temporary work, probationary period – what the banks accept No permanent contract? The bank assesses income continuity: length in the trade, multi-year average, temp work, end of probation, documents that unlock it.
- Can the bank require you to domiciliary your income with it? No text obliges you to domiciliary your income for a mortgage. Quantify the requested consideration and negotiate it before the loan offer.
- Specialist lenders: when a niche bank reads your income better Civil servant, healthcare worker, expatriate: what a grid built for your status changes in the reading of your income, what it costs, when to go there.
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