Navigating the Mortgage Process: A Guide to Working with a Broker

From initial conversation to mortgage offer; have you ever wondered how it all works and what you should expect? You’ve come to the right blog post!

It’s very important before speaking with a mortgage broker that you have a good understanding of your current finances and household expenditure. Write out your gross annual income; whether that’s employed on your payslip or self-employed accounts. Consider any deductions you have such as student loans, pension contributions or share save schemes. Look through your bank statements and your credit report to get a clear understanding of your outgoings; do you have car finance? A personal loan? Write these direct debit payments down as well as any outstanding balances, including credit card balances.

Your mortgage broker will set up an initial call or meeting to discuss your current situation; find out about your income and outgoings, your savings for a deposit (if you’re buying), and what you are looking to achieve. It would be at this stage that you speak with your mortgage broker about any specific areas that you feel may be important, such as whether you have 1 years’ self-employed accounts, or if you have recently started a new job, or if you receive variable income, for example. A mortgage broker is a fantastic person to speak with if you are unsure of which mortgage lenders may consider you or if you can be considered for a mortgage based on your criteria.

Following this meeting, provided you have found a property you would like to purchase, or you already have a property you would like to re-mortgage, The Mortgage Company will send you out an online Fact Find to complete in the comfort of your own home. This provides the base for a future mortgage Decision in Principle and mortgage application, and includes your personal information relevant to the application. Your mortgage broker will also ask you to send over documents at this stage, such as your payslips, bank statements and self-employed accounts, if relevant.

Once your mortgage broker has the information and documents they need, they will begin sourcing the mortgage market available to them, to understand how much you are likely to be able to borrow on the mortgage with each mortgage lender, subject to application. They will also research which mortgage lenders are able to consider a mortgage application for you, based on the conversations you would have previously had.

At this stage, all being well with a mortgage lender and product, your mortgage broker will set up another call to go through the product they have researched and discuss the mortgage illustration in detail with you. It would be at this stage that you ask as many questions about the mortgage that you have; ensuring you are comfortable with the mortgage product and the advice that the mortgage broker is giving you.

If you are keen to progress, your mortgage broker will then get to work with gathering any further documentation needed from you to support a full mortgage application, and they will submit the mortgage application with the relevant mortgage lender. They will chase the mortgage lender, respond to any queries, and follow along with any updates from the mortgage lender right through to mortgage offer. Once the mortgage application has been accepted, they will follow up with the lender to ensure that everything is going according to plan and keep you informed of progress at each stage of the exciting journey.

The mortgage lender will send your mortgage offer to the conveyancer acting for you, and your mortgage broker may keep on top of the progress by your conveyancer if you wish, aiming to ensure the conveyancer is delivering on time and with minimum hassle. Your conveyancer will then manage the remainder of the journey right through to exchange and completion.

A mortgage is secured on your home, your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. The guidance and/or information contained within this blog post is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is therefore targeted at consumers based in the UK. There may be a fee payable for mortgage advice. The precise amount will depend upon your circumstances, and will be discussed with you before proceeding.