A Mortgage Broker specialises in finding lenders who will meet your specific needs for a mortgage. They work directly with the borrower, whether they’re a First Time Buyer, looking to remortgage their current home, or even if they’re looking for a Buy to Let mortgage, to provide advice and recommend mortgages and insurance, in many cases, that meet their requirements.

Mortgage Brokers must be professionally qualified in order to give mortgage advice. Independent Mortgage Brokers offer advice across a broad section of the mortgage market, so are able to consider mortgages from many possible lenders. Mortgage advisers who work directly with a bank, however, are restricted to only advise about the products available from the particular bank that they work for.

When the applicant agrees upon a mortgage, brokers then manage the whole process from completing the mortgage application right the way through to completion, where the client gets the keys to the house.

Should everyone use a Mortgage Broker for their mortgage application?

It’s important that Mortgage Brokers must be authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, but so long as the client checks that they have chosen a broker that meets this criteria, the benefits of using a Mortgage Broker certainly outweigh the costs. The risk of not using a mortgage adviser is that you will not have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service, or the financial services compensation scheme if things were to go wrong.

Mortgage Brokers also have an intimate knowledge of which lenders provide mortgages for specific circumstances and situations. Some lenders won’t accept properties that have a thatched roof or won’t accept clients with a poor credit history. Others have different criteria if you’re self-employed or on a probationary period at work, so Mortgage Brokers can help clients in these circumstances to find those lenders that are more sympathetic to their needs. For a Buy to Let landlord, for example, a Mortgage Broker can find lenders that accept portfolios of certain sizes and/or Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs).

There are also Mortgage Lenders who only lend through Mortgage Brokers, who will provide access to mortgage deals not readily available to the public, some lenders even create exclusive mortgages that are only available through a mortgage broker. By using a Mortgage Broker, you have access to far more mortgages than would generally be available directly to the client. At What Life & Mortgages we currently have over 90 lenders, each of whom has many deals available.

The mortgage application process can be very stressful, so another advantage of going through a Mortgage Broker is that they can take away much of the responsibility of administration and deal with the lender. Their existing knowledge of what lenders require at certain times during the application can also reduce the time spent on requests for information.

What services does a Mortgage Broker offer?

Mortgage Brokers are highly professional and qualified in their industry and can provide a wide range of helpful guidance and advice throughout the application process, including, but not limited to:

• Help you navigate through every stage of finding and applying for a mortgage and provide you access to a very wide range of lenders, meaning you have a better chance of finding a deal.
• Offer expertise and guidance of the whole finance and mortgage markets, which have become more complex over time and continue to go through frequent changes. Interest rates, in particular, fluctuate regularly.
• Help you to assess your financial situation and access your individual credit score
• Offer protection advice about how to manage your income and maintain repayments on your mortgage, for example, if you got into financial difficulty
• At What Life & Mortgages we prepare a will for our clients as part of the process and fund it for them. Most people’s biggest asset in their lifetime is the house and recent statistics show that 70% of people do not have a will in place, so this is a very important consideration.

When should I see a Mortgage Broker?

The best time to talk to a Mortgage Broker is when you’re at the very beginning of the process, perhaps before you have even found the property you want. Particularly if you’re buying your first home, mortgages can be a daunting prospect. At What Life & Mortgages, we don’t charge for the initial consultation, so there’s nothing to lose in contacting us as soon as you have the first thought about moving home.

The first thing your broker will do is put together the facts about your individual circumstances so that when you find a house, we’re already halfway through the process, which could save you weeks.

Where are What Life & Mortgages based?

What Life & Mortgages is based in York and was originally founded ten years ago.

Why is York a popular location to buy property?

One of the main reasons why property is as popular as it is, in York, other than its historic links and natural beauty is its geographical location. Trains can get from York to pretty much anywhere in the UK in less than two hours, which makes it an attractive option for commuters.

York is a very diverse place, that’s forward thinking and has a lot to offer families. There are also two universities and quite a vibrant student life there as well. So there’s so much to offer for people of all ages and it’s a great place to live.

About the What Life & Mortgages Team

We have a number of brokers within our firm, please visit our website where you can meet the whole team using the team view option. We’re approachable and friendly and many of our clients are repeat customers who were happy with our previous service. It’s a very rewarding job to be a part of the journey to something so substantial in people’s lives as homeownership. The feedback that we get, however, is so wonderful and makes everything we do feel even more worthwhile.

How to get in touch

You can contact the office directly, we have long working hours, so there’s almost always someone to take enquiries. You can also contact us via one of the links on our website or email us the details of your enquiry. One of our qualified brokers will get back to you as quickly as possible.