Tighter lending criteria, a reduction in product availability, an economic slowdown, rising levels of unemployment and the end of various government and regulatory support are all adding to what could be a perfect storm later this year. 

Already unemployment is roughly 2.6m – not far off the "3m and counting" that used to hang on a banner outside the former Greater London Council offices in the 1980s.

Together with the rising Covid-19 cases across the UK and the worries over health and home life this brings, millions of Britons are naturally feeling vulnerable.

And when it comes to financing a mortgage and paying rent at a time of economic uncertainty, this can of course create additional worries and financial vulnerabilities, which advisers and lenders alike need to consider. 

So how do mortgage brokers and lenders best support their clients – whether they are buy-to-let landlords, tenants living in rented accommodation or homeowners with a mortgage?

This guide, which qualifies for an estimated 1 hours' worth of CPD, will showcase what the government has already done to help support the mortgage market, explain what sort of vulnerabilities have been exposed by the coronavirus crisis, explore the ways in which brokers can help their clients and assess what more can be done to keep the market functioning well as we head into 2021. 

Contributors to this guide include: UK Finance; the Financial Conduct Authority; Martin Stewart, founder of London Money; Simon Furnell, chief operating officer of Masthaven Bank; David Kennedy, chief lending officer of Masthaven; Vikki Jefferies, proposition director of Primis Mortgage Network; Kate Davies, executive director of the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association; David Thomas, chairman of the Society of Mortgage Professionals and joint managing partner of Chadney Bulgin; Conor Murphy, chief executive of Smartr365 and Capricorn Financial Consultancy; and Rob Griffiths, director of the Mortgage Market Alliance.

Simoney Kyriakou is senior editor of FTAdviser