Independent Financial Advisers
| Picking Your Own Mortgage? |
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There are certain things we choose to do ourselves because we enjoy them, for everything else we tend to like the hard work done for us. Whilst a day with the family picking strawberries makes a welcome change, having to harvest all of your own food is less appealing. The same could be said about your home. Most of us have done the odd bit of decorating but, few of us have decided to build our own extensions. Dealing with your finances is no different from either of the above examples. Whilst we may think nothing of finding our own car or travel insurance on the internet, we still rely on the professionals when we are dealing with the more complex financial issues. It can seem easy to find mortgage deals on the internet with each bank or comparison site saying their mortgage is better or cheaper than their competitors. Sadly though, how many times have you seen great deals on the internet, only to find that in the small print there are additional fee’s and charges applicable, they do not cover the things you need or having spent ages filling out the forms, you find that for some obscure reason you are not eligible at all! This maybe an acceptable risk when you’re spending a few hundred pounds on car insurance, but not when you’re buying your dream home and borrowing often over a £100,000. A mortgage broker is there to find you the best mortgage based on your personal needs, ensure it’s with a lender who is likely to issue you with a mortgage offer and where you apply through them to ensure everything should run smoothly. They see hundreds of clients with similar needs to yours and deal with virtually every lender. It is this experience, knowledge, service and their time you are benefiting from when you use a mortgage broker. In the post credit crunch market, some lenders in a drive to increase their profitability, have decided to cut out mortgage brokers and save their best mortgage rates for clients who go directly to the lender. The problem is which ones do this changes all the time, so finding the best deals can prove tricky. In addition if the best product for you is a deal only available by going direct to the bank, you need your mortgage broker to make you aware this. A traditional commission based mortgage broker receives nothing for telling you about a better direct deal. So if the best deal is one direct from a bank, an obvious conflict of interest exists. Surprisingly the Financial Services Authority is completely fine with a mortgage broker calling themselves independent, but not telling you about any cheaper direct deals you may be eligible for. Price comparison websites commonly have the same limitations as a traditional commission based mortgage broker. Website aside, price comparison sites are built on the same business model as their High Street mortgage broker counterparts. Although they often carry an air of impartiality, comparison sites are normally funded by the same commission system as mortgage brokers and as such the same conflict of interest often exists. We however think differently, independent should mean the whole of the market, not just those products where commissions are payable. Our clients come to us for our knowledge and access to detailed information on all mortgages. Our clients want to be able to make an informed choice based on all the facts, not a limited selection of products on which a mortgage broker will make money. Our service offering is True Whole of Market Mortgage Advice and includes:
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