Mortgage brokers

[CeibaTree]

Has anyone not used a mortgage broker? Are they really necessary to get a good rate as opposed to applying directly to a bank yourself? We have around a 50% deposit (due to equity and inheritance). Thanks for your thoughts :)

We used Habito, to be honest we found the same deals by just looking at comparison websites. Although we did start the application with one bank in mind then a better deal came up with another so we put our application in with bank 2.
Where they came into their own was how quick and easy everything was. I first approached them this time last week and we had our mortgage offer from the bank this lunchtime. I still cant quite believe it!

Everything gets uploaded online and you speak via on online chat function. I really cant recommend them highly enough. Our application went to the bank on Monday and less than 48hrs later we got the mortgage offer.

I'm still waiting for a call back from L&C who I filled the initial questions in for 2 days before approaching Habito 😂

i have never used a broker. if you are an uncomplicated case what is the point?

I adore mine! I have complex finances and he got me a great 2 year fixed mortgage. He called me two months before it expired and got me a renewal that was 200 less than I'd been paying. The man is a genius

L&C have been fab for us. Fee free and whole of market. We will be using them next year to remortgage.

We are currently moving but porting our mortgage due to an early redemption fee, this runs out next year and we will use L&C again.

Used an independent and he is wonderful. Went back for remortgage

First property didn't as had straight forward finances.

Currently buying and was more complex as dh was on probation and we wanted an interest only mortgage so went through a broker

L&C good - I’ve used in past

Lately, Using a broker has worked well for me as saves me money vs what I can find myself

Always use a mortgage broker and just make sure they don't charge a fee.

Yes. Worth every penny. I'm sure I could have used a comparison site and found good deals. But it takes all the stress away. We just sit in the front room, drink tea, sign the paperwork and ta dah. Done. They also chased our solicitors on our behalf. Definitely got our moneys worth.

Unlike PP I prefer those who charge a fee. They should be working for you, not the bank paying the biggest commission.

I’d recommend a broker, we are remortgaging so we can renovate and our one found us a perfect deal for our personal circumstance.

Used a broker, but mainly because we have significant child care fees and needed a lender who suited our circumstances, as opposed to looking at the childcare bills and saying 'computer says no.' Our broker found our mortgage match for that particular point in our lives. We just saw the risk of a rejected mortgage application too great at the time! We are more relaxed now, but we are paying significantly less for childcare now.

In my experience, they don't have better rates than what you get direct, that's changed in recent years, it's not like it used to be. They're incredibly useful (and frankly necessary) if you're a bit of a complicated case, but I much preferred going direct to the bank than I did going through brokers, get a bad one and they make the process MUCH more stressful. That said my last one was fantastic and saved us an early exit fee (that another broker told us we'd have to pay however!)

I don't like middle men, prefer to do things myself, and would never pay one unless I knew my case wasn't straight forward.

I went with a broker after a recommendation in April this year. Before going to the broker, I already had a quote from Lloyds bank.

The broker gave me their best deals from Skipton & Halifax to choose from. When I compared both with the Lloyds quote, Lloyds came out far most better and I went with Lloyds.

I'll never use a broker again, they're all criminals.

We’ve never used a broker. Just shopped around and done our research.

@chukwe

I went with a broker after a recommendation in April this year. Before going to the broker, I already had a quote from Lloyds bank.

The broker gave me their best deals from Skipton & Halifax to choose from. When I compared both with the Lloyds quote, Lloyds came out far most better and I went with Lloyds.

I'll never use a broker again, they're all criminals.

Bit of a sweeping statement, @chukwe!

Our broker is amazing. Used him when I bought my first house, and two years later he was knocking 9 years off my term.

He’s supported us through an otherwise stressful process this time round.

I can email him at 9pm on a Sunday; he’ll reply at 8.30am on the Monday and apologise for the delay.

DH jokes I’d marry him if I could and he’s probs right.

We really love ours! He's a genius and takes all the hard work on for us. We have used him several times and so have all our family and friends. Find a good one through recommendations.

@LividLaughLurve If I hadn't had a quote from Lloyds earlier, I would've swore by him.

Did you compare your broker's rate with a bank?

Er they are not all criminals, what a thing to say. My husband is a broker and works really hard to find his clients the best deal. Also gives tons of independent guidance whether you decide to go with him or not.

Whether it is right for you or not that's fair enough but don't chat shit because you had one bad experience!

We’ve used the same mortgage broker firm since we bought our first house. The first guy who worked there was amazing, sorted everything out for our help to buy first property. We’re currently in the process of moving and actually love our new mortgage broker from the same company. She was incredibly calm, organised and helpful and answered all our queries and sorted it all out for us. I did an awful lot of research myself and I still am grateful that she did the actual process for us.

Thanks everyone! I think it sounds a good idea to use one - now can anyone recommend one please? :)

If you are a straightforward case then any fee free whole of market broker will probably be fine. I think london and country are one of the biggest and were fine when I used them. Someone mentioned Habito who I also looked at because they have decent reviews. The mortgage advisor came up with very sinilar deals to those I could find direct but did know which lenders would be quicker than others.