Do I really need a mortgage broker?

2cb

I'm looking to remortgage when my current tie-in expires. I Googled and came up with a lifetime tracker from HSBC currently at 2.29%. £99 fee. I called London and Country, and after going through the process he said he couldn't do any better.
Can a mortgage broker really do any better than the HSBC offer? I don't mind paying a fee if it gains me something.

originalmiscellany

No you don't need a broker if you're straightforward I would say.
If you're prepared to do the paperwork etc, and it can take time and effort then it can sometimes be just as easy to do it yourself, and you can get better deals going direct.
That said a broker can provide a much better service if you're a challenging case with say credit rating and what not.

It does take a lot of time, (I did ours with First Direct last year) and I would say it took 15 hours and a lot of paperwork/letters/phone calls etc.

Thrugelmir

HSBC don't offer mortgages through brokers. Their mortgage rates are extremely attractive but correspondingly their underwriting criteria is extremely high to filter out applicants.

jamesperrett

If you know what you want then go for it. I'm not sure what HSBC's service is like but, when applying for my last mortgage direct with Woolwich, I found that the initial sales people were very efficient but the later parts of the process were nothing like as easy. I also had to go into a branch of Barclays twice to prove my identity as they didn't follow the correct process the first time round. Hopefully HSBC are better.

James.

2cb

15 hours! That sounds like a good reason to use a broker. But then, I won't get the same deal from a broker.15 hours work to save £500 is probably worth it. Why does it take so long?
Do I know what I want? I think so. No one can predict the future and say whether a fix would be better value, so can a broker help there? I can afford the risk of a variable rate, so to me it looks like the sensible option is to just grab the lowest rate I can.
I'm just worried I might have missed something.

hillcats

No, you don't need to use a broker at all if you are confident about your own financial position and you are able to deal with the lender directly, I have done my last three mortgages on my own with no problems at all.

Catanddogs

I have just done ours with FD, the hardest part was having to think about where my wage slips were located in the house! FD completed most of the application over the phone it took about 3 hours work including phone calls and they agreed mortgage 4 days after application was sent back to them (i know this varies from one application to another).

Crashandburn

Sounds like you've used a broker already

If he has said he cant better it, then surely that's a good recommendation. Criteria is tight with HSBC and they don't like other mortgages in the background ie BTLs

kingstreet

If you're the proverbial square peg fitting the appropriate orifice, go ahead as you're likely to have little problem.

Brokers strengths lie in their ability to file off those nasty edges when you're trying to fit in the round hole and offer regulatory protection you won't get from banks and building societies who avoid giving "advice" altogether.

2cb

kingstreet wrote: »

If you're the proverbial square peg fitting the appropriate orifice, go ahead as you're likely to have little problem.

Brokers strengths lie in their ability to file off those nasty edges when you're trying to fit in the round hole and offer regulatory protection you won't get from banks and building societies who avoid giving "advice" altogether.

I get the point that brokers are good for finding a mortgage when you don't meet the strict criteria for the best deals, and so I don't need one in that respect. But, what 'regulatory protection' do they offer? Would I benefit from this?

Wh05apk

2cb wrote: »

I get the point that brokers are good for finding a mortgage when you don't meet the strict criteria for the best deals, and so I don't need one in that respect. But, what 'regulatory protection' do they offer? Would I benefit from this?

They are also good for straight forward cases, as they can collate the paperwork etc and chase the lenders (most are currently a pain to deal with!)

Protection wise they are giving you advice, ensuring you have the most suitable deal, which potentially could give you some comeback.