What do brokers actually do?

jodiepoke

I would avoid brokers that are attached to estate agents! Me and the BF are FTB so thought we could see what it was like and what deals we could get but he tried to push us into thinking we could buy a property that was way too expensive for us, pushing our budget to the limit and saying we can just come back to him to remortgage. I came away quite upset with the way he spoke to us and the "advice" he gave. We went straight to halifax, who gave us really good advice and wanted to give us the shortest term we could afford.

Don't let them push you about and make sure you have a plan of what you want to spend and your budget!

Obviously he did just us advice that may work for other people however we did not want to go down the route he proposed.

stator

ACG

We find out about you - What is your situation, what do you want to borrow and buy (is it a problematic property for example - short lease, near commercial property) and what do you want from your mortgage (cheapest deal, quickest lender, longest stability, low fees.

We then find the best product we can that not only suits what you want, but where you fit what the lender is looking for in a customer.

Then we get all of the documents we expect to need upfront to save you doing anything else from this point in. We submit the application and (I) liasie with the agents to make sure they are up to speed with what is happening, time scales and in general try to keep them off your case.

We advise you off the process, next steps and timescales and if it does hit the fan we try to shield you from it.

Once you have your offer the solicitor tends to take over, but we are still there as a second point of contact should you need it.

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I was not going to mention the fees, fee free brokers have their place but they tend to work on a numbers game. Will they be around if you need them? Will they be around if the lender needs to get hold of them?

There are good and bad reviews on here about L&C. Personally, I am not a huge fan of call centres for any job let along the biggest purchase of my life.

kingstreet

From 09.30 to 10.00 I do a few illustrations, then I play golf and drink G&T for the rest of the day.

[Deleted User]

In the case of our first mortgage advisor: Helped us find a mortgage, then fill in the paperwork - then vanish off the face of the earth once we had a problem with the admissions process leaving me to do all the communication back and forth with the mortgage company.

Next time round, we used a broker again as we wanted to borrow within the limits of affordability. They were rubbish again (Both came recommended!). I then decided to do it all myself, and it wasn't trouble at all. We ended up with a mortgage rate better than a 'whole of market' advisor could get for us (since it was online only)

Nickilin66

As ringo_24601, exact carbon copy, and I had to deal with Nationwide too which was an awful experience.

Just applied for an excellent rate remortgage direct, sent one lot of paperwork, valuation was quick, mortgage agreed within weeks. HSBC this time, going through now

All it is paperwork and common sense, hardly worth hundreds of pounds and the delay of a middle man.

Lokolo

Something to also look at is as it's been mentioned before, you can get some better rates going via a broker. Halifax seems to be one of the main ones.

You can get Halifax mortgages yourself or via a broker, the broker versions seem to be cheaper in my circumstance.

ap1985

I am currently using L&C and am finding them to be very helpful and efficient. They have dealt with all the stressful application with Halifax on my behalf plus my help to buy application. They are constantly chasing up Halifax on my application and keeping me updated. Alongside that I am also doing my Life Insurance with them. I would definitely use them again in the future and would happily recommend them to others.

cjm888

Just to add I used L&C as they got a better preferred rate from the lender. 1.43 % vs 1.79% advertised rate.