Mortgages

31 replies

Iammetoday · 02/08/2023 08:00

Looking at mortgages. My local broker wants £55 up front before an online appointment but l&c want nothing online. Am I missing something? Is l&c OK?

OP posts:

pompomdaisy · 05/08/2023 01:55

I used L&C once but now I just use compare the market. I couldn't really see what the point of the broker was.

BarbaraofSeville · 05/08/2023 07:19

It's also good to do your own research, if you're not stretching income multiples, LTV or have credit history issues, you can probably find equivalent deals on CTM/Moneysupermarket etc. Plus not all lenders go via brokers, some are direct only.

I sent a query to one of the big online brokers (JC or L&C) and they completely ignored what I wanted and were quite rude when I said I wouldn't be taking their recommended product, which would have cost us thousands extra over the life of the mortgage. I wanted a lifetime BOE tracker and they offered a 2 year discount from SVR so completely different product that was likely to make more money for the bank and the broker as they had control over interest rates and I'd be needing to remortgage again after 2 years - this is how they make their money by tricking people into thinking they need to change their mortgages all the time.

So I just applied direct to the lender and did it that way.

Globules · 05/08/2023 07:33

I stopped using L&C about 5 years ago. Their customer service has gone downhill significantly since the early days.

I now use a wonderful independent fee free whole of market broker who answers the phone herself and responds to emails within a few hours.

I've never been able to get a better deal than the ones she's found for me.

MistyMorningMelons · 06/08/2023 13:18

Globules · 05/08/2023 07:33

I stopped using L&C about 5 years ago. Their customer service has gone downhill significantly since the early days.

I now use a wonderful independent fee free whole of market broker who answers the phone herself and responds to emails within a few hours.

I've never been able to get a better deal than the ones she's found for me.

@Globules If you could share the recommendation it would be much appreciated. I have non standard (but not bizarre) circumstances, so L&C are no use to me and the people I used previously are £££, slow and useless since changing hands.

TeleTropes · 06/08/2023 13:23

lljkk · 04/08/2023 19:03

Why do people need mortgage brokers... i mean, why can't a few hours on google search find equivalent quality deals for residential primary home mortgages?

The best deal for my mortgage was Birmingham Midshire. Good luck finding out about their mortgages on the website (or indeed taking one without a broker).

Plus brokers often have better deals, and not everyone has the time to spend trawling 100+ websites to check they meet eligibility then looking at rates and comparing them when someone can do it for you.

Bonfire23 · 06/08/2023 13:38

I used simply adverse for a complicated mortgage with adverse credit
Expensive but perfect and I had been let down before by a couple of brokers

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