Not to use mortgage broker

[TreeDudette]

I reached out to a mortgage broker as I need a specific type of mortgage for a property purchase and I was struggling to find something with google. The guy did the search and has found a mortgage from a reputable high street lender that suits me. Then he told me that it would cost £500 to submit the mortgage application and there would be a £1500 charge for them to follow the mortgage through to award. They also get a commission of £360 from the lender. The mortgage is only for £90k. I'd be happy to pay for the application but I don't want to pay for the application to be persued as I can do that myself. He says the fees are all or nothing.

Would I be unreasonable to say in that case nothing and apply for the mortgage myself directly with the lender (which I can do as now I know where to look I can find the mortgage online myself)? He did help find the mortgage which probably took him an hour (he got back to me within a couple of hours of our conversation about what I needed so can't have taken more than 2 hours). £500 + £360 seems plenty to pay for that. Nearly £2.5k on a £90k mortgage seems nuts! Am I being a scrooge / scrounger?

If they accept direct applications then you would be silly to pay a broker, if you haven't committed to do that.

I do think it’s unreasonable to get someone to do free work for you and then use that information to cut them out. If it’s a straightforward case - why waste their time in the first place?

Mortgage brokers are self employed, they don’t get pensions or holiday pay, pay a lot in fees themselves to the regulator or network they are part of in order to trade. To complete a full application and ensure it goes through takes time and skill - that’s what you’re paying for.

Im not a mortgage broker - a relative is and they often get shafted by people getting them to do the leg work and then cutting them
out.

Yeah, no.

Why would you pay a broker to submit and manage your application if you can do it for zero?

I don't understand why folk use a broker unless theirs is a particularly complex situation. I worked in mortgages for a bank for years then my circumstances changed and I DID need a broker - they hammered me with communication when the original deal came to an end, pestered me about them managing the deal change - when I could do it with the same lender for free at the touch of a button.

I think there should be a finders fee though - you did use their service to find you a suitable lender

Jesus those fees are punchy for a quick search and filling in a form. They're on about 500 quid per hour and are taking the piss. I always go direct with the lender. It's normally a really simple process.