What is the OMA®Engine?
The OMA®Engine is our in-house mortgage intelligence engine. It combines two live datasets – real-time lender criteria and current mortgage product data – to power smarter, more personalised mortgage insights across our tools and content.
It reflects how lenders actually make decisions, not just what mortgages they offer.
And it powers:
Our mortgage comparison tool
Live stats and insights throughout the site
Better advice from our brokers
Better customer journeys and experiences
No one else uses data this way. That’s why our tools can tell you things others can’t.
Why We Built It
Most comparison tools show what products exist on the market, ranked by price. Other tools use vague calculations and rough averages to give an approximate idea, which can be misleading.
We wanted to show what is possible for specific individuals.
We saw that many borrowers were being let down:
They’d be given the impression that things were possible for them that weren’t
They’d get declined because of hidden criteria
Or worse, they’d be disheartened, wouldn’t apply at all because they wrongly assumed they wouldn’t qualify
The OMA®Engine is our answer to that. It brings transparency, accuracy, and clarity to a market that’s long been missing all three.
What Powers the OMA®Engine?
The engine brings together two critical, continuously updated data sources:
We ingest over 10,000 mortgage products daily from Home Buyer Systems, which uses Defaqto data. Defaqto powers tools across well-known mortgage firms and comparison sites like Compare the Market.
This gives us live product information, including:
Rates
Fees
Loan-to-value limits
Term lengths
Specific product features
We also integrate directly with Knowledge Bank, an award-winning criteria platform used by brokers.
We apply 480 (and growing) real-time lender policy rules, submitted and maintained by lenders themselves.
These cover things like:
Bad credit acceptance rules
Income types (self-employed, bonuses, retained profits, etc.)
Property quirks (like flats above shops or listed buildings)
Age limits, visa requirements, deposit source rules, and more
Because the data comes straight from lenders, we’re as close to the source as possible.
How the OMA®Engine Works
Here’s how the OMA®Engine turns that data into insight:
- Every day, we pull updated mortgage products and criteria data into our secure server.
- We structure, analyse, and categorise the raw data.
- The result is a set of smart matching rules reflecting official criteria and real-world lender behaviour.
- These rules power everything from eligibility filters to live content insights and personalised journeys.
This isn’t just a database. It’s an interpretive system designed to provide instantaneous insight that most mortgage advisors cannot provide.
What makes the OMA®Engine different from other tools?
Most mortgage tools are built around one idea: list some rates and let people compare. But for anyone who isn’t a textbook-perfect borrower, that often leads to confusion, rejection, or missed opportunities.
Unlike typical mortgage comparison tools, the OMA®Engine combines product data with live lender criteria. It also flags when a lender may or may not be a fit, shows why, and updates daily using trusted broker-grade platforms. It’s the closest thing to “being the broker” available to consumers.
It’s built for real people, not just hypotheticals.
Here’s what makes it stand out:
Rather than showing you generic deals, the OMA®Engine filters results using live product data and official lender rules – including policy quirks and exceptions that most tools ignore. That means more relevant, personalised results.
We don’t just take the criteria at face value. The OMA®Engine shows things like where lender decisions might be flexible, stricter than advertised, or require underwriter discretion.
You’ll see the same filters, notes, and eligibility cues that a professional advisor would use – including lender-written policy explanations and flags that help you avoid hidden pitfalls.
Whether your income isn’t PAYE at the same job for the past 10 years, your credit isn’t perfect, your property type isn’t mainstream, or anything else – the OMA®Engine is designed to work for you, not just those who fit the standard template.
You’ll know why a lender does or doesn’t appear in your results. And we never prioritise deals based on commission or marketing spend. Just fit and fairness.
How it compares to other tools
| Feature | Other Mortgage Tools | OMA®Engine |
|---|---|---|
| Shows mortgage rates and fees | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Sorts based on mortgage type and deposit size | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Shows affordability estimates | ⚠️Sometimes (usually basic or averages-based) | ✔️ Yes - based on lender-specific loan-to-income caps |
| Updated daily | ⚠️Varies, often isn’t stated | ✔️ Yes - updated daily |
| Incentive-free results rankings | ⚠️ Some may prioritise partners or profit | ✔️ |
| Applies and shows live lender policies and criteria | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Accounts for grey areas and case-by-case rules | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Allows you to personalise search using real-world issues | ❌ | ✔️ Yes - 580 individual criteria and policies accounted for and growing |
| Built by industry experts with broker-grade insights | ❌ | ✔️ |
How We Change Lives
Discover stories from customers who've transformed their lives after choosing Online Mortgage Advisor to match them with the perfect broker for their unique needs.
What the OMA®Engine Powers
The OMA®Engine is the backbone of our platform.
It powers:
The only mortgage comparison tool in the UK that lets you filter results based on live lender criteria – not just rates or deposit size.
It shows you:
Which lenders’ policies you fit with
Where acceptance comes with conditions
Where acceptance is by exception only
Where acceptance requires a manual review by an underwriter or representative
Where a lender will not accept you under any conditions
Users can even click through to see the lender’s actual policy wording for each criteria filter they apply.
Because our engine can return live stats at a filter level, we can show very specific things like:
Important
“37 lenders will consider retained profits towards income calculations, with rates starting at 5.1%.”
These stats update daily and provide transparency that previously only brokers had access to.
We use the OMA®Engine to tailor user journeys based on:
Your situation
Your mortgage type
Your potential eligibility
This allows us to deliver tools, support, and advisors in a way that fits your needs—not just force you through a generic sales funnel with a promise of answers after you’ve jumped through the hoops.
We use it to empower our channel experts, who:
Use the engine to triage edge-cases fast
Spot gaps or opportunities others might miss
Explain things in plain English using live data
Is It Always Perfect?
No tool can replace real expertise entirely. We do our best with data obtained directly from lenders, but lenders still change their rules, move their goalposts and sometimes say one thing and do another.
That’s why we recommend users speak to a channel expert to validate any conclusions they draw. The OMA®Engine is a game-changer, but it works best when paired with real human advice.
Why It Matters
This is the first time borrowers have been able to:
See what brokers see
Personalise results using detailed lender criteria
Understand the policy behind the result
We’re not hiding anything behind conversations and commitment. We’re giving you the tools that specialist brokers have access to. Some users using this tool will be more informed on their policy quirks than most generalist brokers.
We want you to access the right advice when you need it, for the right purpose, and when you’re ready.
FAQs
Mortgage product data comes from Home Buyer Systems, which uses Defaqto data (also used by well-known banks and comparison sites like Compare the Market). Lender criteria comes from Knowledge Bank, an award winning broker tool updated directly by lenders.
We pull in product and criteria data once per day. That means your results are fresh, but we still recommend speaking to an advisor before applying to avoid any last-minute issues.
No – and it’s not trying to.
The OMA®Engine gives you visibility into the same rates, rules, and lender notes that brokers use to assess your situation. In fact, in many cases, it goes further than most advisors would go themselves when researching options. It’s one of the most powerful tools ever made available to borrowers directly.
But even with all of that power, a tool can’t replace what a great advisor with the relevant experience does.
Here’s why:
- It shows lender policies – not lender decisions.
The OMA®Engine can show you what lenders say they accept. But whether a lender actually approves your application depends on dozens of subtle factors that only a human underwriter or an advisor with the relevant experience can interpret properly. For borrowers who don’t fit the standard template, this distinction matters. - Not all nuances are documented.
Some lenders publish detailed criteria. Others are ambiguous or change policy thresholds frequently depending on LTV bands, market conditions, or the size of the loan. A tool can show you what’s on record – an advisor with strong lender relationships in the right areas knows when and which lenders stick to their rules or don’t. - It doesn’t know your full picture.
Unless you’ve added every single relevant detail, including any “grey area” factors, the tool’s logic can only go so far. A good broker will ask better questions, interpret the answers more deeply, and consider things you may not even know are relevant. For example, you may fit within a lender’s policy for a specific issue, but, depending on the volume of applications they’re getting that quarter, they may increase their minimum deposit threshold. This wouldn’t necessarily show as part of the policy. - It doesn’t manage risk or deadlines.
If your mortgage needs to be approved by a certain date, or you’re facing possible delays due to documentation or credit issues, timing matters. Some lenders are faster, some are slower, and some may take days to ask for additional evidence. A good broker knows how to plan around that. - It can’t replace human support or reassurance.
Tools are great for surfacing options. But when it comes to high-stakes decisions like mortgages, confidence doesn’t just come from seeing numbers. It comes from knowing someone experienced has looked at your situation and said, “Yes – this is the right move.”
Yes. In fact, we encourage it. If something doesn’t look right, show it to us or any other advisor you’re talking to, and they should be able to explain exactly why a lender is or isn’t right for you.
Technical Appendix (for geeks)
- Product data from Home Buyer Systems (Defaqto-powered)
- Criteria data from Knowledge Bank
- Daily product and criteria syncs via API
- Criteria rules mapped against product availability
- Rules prioritised based on exclusion logic (e.g. “not accepted” overrides “accepted by exception”)
-
All mortgage product shown when criteria filters are applied provide “More Info” detailing official lender policy
- Powers comparison tool, live stats, journeys, and more
- Expandable into third-party tools, calculators, and content widgets