Mortgage Pre-Qualification Tool: Bridging the Gap to Home Ownership

Background

Coast Capital needed a way for prospective home buyers to explore their borrowing capacity before committing to a formal pre-approval. We built a lead generation tool that estimates mortgage amounts and connects users with mortgage specialists—bridging discovery and action.

Problem

We were designing for two audiences with conflicting needs: non-members expected a competitive experience on par with other institutions, while members expected Coast familiarity and trust. The business wanted direct feature parity with competitors, and the Mortgage Specialist team needed leads from qualified buyers. The challenge was satisfying both without compromising on user experience.

Process

We examined competitor products under the assumption that prospective homebuyers would compare pre-qualifications across institutions. We iterated based on member needs, then validated assumptions through stakeholder feedback, internal staff testing, and real user research.

Design principles

Challenges

A key stakeholder wanted an exact replica of a competitor’s tool. By involving them throughout testing, we built buy-in around our approach through data, not persuasion.

The company underwent a brand refresh mid-project. We partnered with our Lead Visual Designer to rebuild components that honored the new guidelines while respecting the constraints of Pixel, Coast Capital’s design system.

We also didn’t own the marketing page feeding into our tool. While we had solid insights on what drove prospects to the experience, another team owned the final vision. Collaboration was difficult when teams had competing priorities.

Outcomes

Launched July 2022. The tool has connected thousands of Canadians with Coast Capital Mortgage Specialists and remains the primary first touchpoint for prospective homeowners.

Key impact: Components built here were significantly adopted and integrated into Coast’s current form experience.

Iterations

Post-launch, we identified opportunities to boost engagement and deepen user understanding. Early feedback showed users didn’t grasp what a pre-qualification was or where it fit in their home-buying journey. We refined landing page copy to clarify purpose, added an educational modal explaining the tool upfront, and surfaced promotional offers to drive engagement. Only after establishing context did we guide users toward connecting with a Mortgage Specialist—building confidence before the ask.