Technology

7 Productivity Tools in Acre

Subscribe to our newsletter

Thank you! Your submission has been received!

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

In the busy life of a mortgage or protection advisor, even the smallest gain in efficiency can make a huge difference. With Acre mortgage and protection CRM software, that can be anything from easier communication with your client to the management of each case’s documents.

Here at Acre, we do everything with the brokers’ needs in mind. We know how long and frustrating mortgage application processes can be, which is why we have created productivity-improving tools. With a range of innovative tools and features, Acre helps you manage your workload more efficiently and effectively.

From automated scheduling to document management and LandRegistry data, these features are designed to make your life easier, saving you time and effort so you can focus on what really matters - giving your client the best possible advice.

In this post, we'll explore seven ways that our mortgage software that can help you take your productivity to the next level. If you're looking to streamline your workflow and increase productivity as a mortgage advisor, Acre has got you covered.

1. Acre Scheduler

Acre Scheduler seamlessly integrates your Microsoft 365 calendar with Acre, enabling your clients to easily book meetings with you based on your availability.

This means that you no longer have to go back and forth between emails, text messages and calls with your clients, trying to find a convenient time in your busy schedules.

Acre Scheduler helps you stay on top of your workload by making sure you never miss a meeting simply because your daily schedule is already waiting for you in your personal calendar.

You can read more details about how Acre Scheduler streamlines your workflow and maximises your productivity in our dedicated blog post.

2. Secure Client Messaging

Secure Client Messaging is a new Acre feature which enables advisors to communicate with clients directly via the Acre CRM and the Client Portal. With real-time notifications, both you and your client will be instantly alerted when a new message is received.

This feature streamlines communication and boosts your organisation and efficiency throughout the mortgage process. The chat’s user-friendly design is similar to popular messaging apps, ensuring clients can easily connect with you and stay informed of their progress.

The chat’s user-friendly design is similar to any other messaging app, making clients feel like they can easily get in touch with you and stay in the loop of their mortgage journey.

For more details on Secure Client messaging, head over to our latest blog post. You can also read the press release which highlights the most recent improvements Acre has done to its next-level Client Portal.

‍

3. Document management

Document types

Acre's Document Types menu simplifies document management by allowing you to categorize your uploaded files. You can choose from a variety of document types, including credit reports, bank statements, and birth certificates.

We know that advisors frequently use documents such as utility bills, pension statements, or bank statements as "Proof of Address" for clients. With Acre, you can use these documents to verify client addresses.

Documents marked as "Internal" are only visible to you and members of your firm. These documents will not be accessible to your clients in the Client Portal.

Bulk upload

Uploading multiple documents can be a challenging task, particularly when dealing with unorganized files. Acre's bulk upload feature solves this problem by allowing you to select and upload up to 10 files at once.

We recommend bulk uploading documents of the same type to streamline the process and avoid having to adjust document types manually for each file.

Generate Fact Find and IDD

Acre automates the creation of all the documents you need in the advice journey, from initial disclosures (IDD), through documenting the advice (proof of research and affordability calculator results) through the final suitability or reasons why letter. If the data in the case change – maybe a client has a revised income, or the deposit amounts have changed – then the documents are all automatically reissued. It’s as simple as that.

‍

4. Land Registry data

Acre automatically pulls data directly from the HM LandRegistry and 45 other reputable sources, allowing advisors to use in-depth information about any UK property, at the click of a button.

This feature saves time and enables advisors to make better-informed recommendations to their clients. The data can be easily added to the Fact Find, which increases accuracy and helps identify potential issues early in the mortgage application process.

Having access to detailed information about a property allows you to identify potential problems with the property in the early stages of a mortgage application to avoid future problems.

If you want to find out more about our Land Registry integration, read the full press release, outlining the details.

‍

5. Sourcing, Criteria & Affordability in 1 view

When we started building Acre, we were surprised at how separate sourcing tools are from the core advice process. In Acre, we put sourcing at the heart of advice, with mortgage products, criteria and affordability tied to the case and pulled into one easy-to-use view.

We show you how many products will remain after each filter, and we let you document affordability results whenever you save a product to the case. What better way to save time and drive your productivity?

6. Pre-filled ONS data in Expenditure

In Acre, you no longer need to have long and exhausting calls with your clients, asking them about every single detail of your lifestyle just so you can complete their expenditure report.

Acre offers pre-filled data from the ONS, giving you a reliable estimate of your client’s spending based on where they are in the country and the people in their household.

The pre-filled data is all changeable, so advisors can use it as a starting point and adapt to the specific situation for the clients.

7. Notes

Acre's notes section is a powerful organizational tool that ensures your workload is properly managed, allowing you to easily locate and add new notes. With various note categories such as General, Messaged, Email and Call, you can always keep track of your work and promptly search for essential information when needed.

The star button is an excellent feature that enables you to prioritise notes by pinning them to the top of the page for quick access.

‍

Learn more about Acre

You can read more about Acre’s features and integrations in our dedicated blog posts and press releases.

If you’re still not convinced how much time and effort Acre’s productivity features would save you every single day, get in touch with our Business Development team. They would be happy to show you the platform live and answer all your questions.

Find a time suitable for your schedule here: https://www.acresoftware.com/demo

‍

Acre is now Score

What's changed?

What's changing is the name and the way we look. Acre is now trading as Score, with a fresh brand identity to match, but everything you rely on stays exactly where it is. It's still the same mortgage all-in-one platform that advisors, firms, and networks across the country already use to grow their businesses, now presented under a name that brings us in line with the wider ClearScore Group.

Why the new name?

ClearScore acquired Acre earlier this year, and we've carried plenty of momentum into life as part of the Group since. Moving to the Score brand is a natural next step, because it brings us in line with ClearScore and reflects the mission we share, which is to make home buying quicker and easier and to help people take control of their financial lives. As our founder and Managing Director Justus Brown has put it, the day-to-day service you receive won't change at all, and bringing our brand together with the Group simply makes that shared mission clearer.

Has the mission changed?

Not in the slightest! We have always been here to make home buying quicker and easier, taking the pain out of the process so that people can get into their homes sooner, and that is exactly what we will keep doing, with a good deal more behind us now to do it well.

Will the service change?

No, it won't, you'll continue working with the same platform and the same people, and your existing contracts and commercial terms stay exactly as they are, still held with the same legal entity, Acre Platforms Limited. Our Customer Success team will keep looking after you just as they do today.

About ClearScore

Who is ClearScore?

The ClearScore Group is a global leader in financial marketplaces, helping over 27 million people access credit, insurance, and other financial products with greater transparency, fairness, and control. It founded its flagship UK credit marketplace in 2015, has since expanded across four continents and into new verticals such as its DriveScore app, and now works with over 200 partners worldwide. ClearScore is profitable, growing, and on a mission to make personal finance clearer, calmer, and easier to understand, and that mission runs right through its culture, along with a genuine belief in giving people more clarity and control over their money.

How do we fit into ClearScore?

We sit alongside ClearScore's other technology platforms, including D•One, its open banking service for lenders, together powering borrowing and home lending across unsecured credit, auto finance, and now mortgages.

What does the change
unlock?

What does joining ClearScore bring?

Joining ClearScore gives us a great deal more room to grow. With their backing, we can accelerate our technology roadmap and bring new AI-powered features to the platform faster than we could before, and we can enrich what we build with ClearScore's proprietary data and insights, getting cutting-edge technology into the hands of mortgage and protection businesses sooner.

What do brokers and firms stand to gain?

For the brokers and firms who use us, it really comes down to growing faster. Drawing on ClearScore's financial power and its UK user base of over 16 million, we can build the features you ask for more quickly and bring more leads into the ecosystem, which gives brokers, networks, and advisors more opportunities to win new business.

Is the business growing?

We're growing quickly, and so are the firms who build their business on the platform. Since the acquisition, we've seen record numbers of monthly mortgage submissions come through Score, and we've more than doubled our revenue year on year, with growth of over 2.5x. That momentum is showing up in our customers' businesses too: firms on the platform are saving each broker around four days a month on application processing, identifying protection needs for 85% of their mortgage clients, and doubling their client conversion rates. Delivering results like these takes serious engineering and serious investment, and with ClearScore behind us we can keep raising that bar at a pace few others in the market can match.

Why build your business on Score?

Because you'll be choosing a platform that is built to last. A lot of new mortgage tools have appeared lately, and many of them are small, pop-up CRMs put together quickly on basic AI, the kind of thing that can disappear just as fast as it arrived. Score is a very different proposition, we are an established, whole-of-market platform that brokers, networks, and advisors across the country already trust with their businesses, and we are now backed by one of the most advanced and reliable fintech stacks in the industry through ClearScore. A proven platform, real investment, and genuine scale mean we can keep powering ahead of newer, lighter-weight tools and keep building for the long term.

Independence and
ownership

Is Acre being absorbed into ClearScore?

No. We operate as an independent business unit within the ClearScore Group, with our full management team staying exactly where they are, and we'll carry on supporting mortgage and protection firms with the same data-driven platform, now with the reach and scale of the wider Group behind us.

Will our advice-first philosophy change?

No. We have always believed that the best mortgage decisions come from high-quality, personal advice, and it is a belief ClearScore shares. If anything, the direction the market is heading only reinforces it, which is why we will stay a whole-of-market platform focused on helping brokers do their very best work for their clients.

Your data

Is my data safe?

Yes, and nothing about the move to Score changes that. Your data, and your clients' data, is protected by exactly the same contractual obligations and technical safeguards as before, and being part of ClearScore does not give anyone new access to it. We will never introduce your customers to a third party without the right consent, and your clients always keep the rights to their own data. If anything, joining a group whose entire business is built on handling data responsibly, and only ever with the user's permission, raises the bar we hold ourselves to.

The best way to see what Score can do is to book a demo, and we'll walk you through the platform and how it could work for your firm. If you'd rather drop us a line, you can reach our sales team at sales@scoremortgage.com, or send any general enquiries to hello@scoremortgage.com.