What Does A Mortgage Broker Do?
- We’re whole of market Mortgage Advisers based in Central Scotland.
- We’ll use our years of experience to find the right mortgage for you.
- Clients love our speed and communication throughout the process.
Get In Touch
What Does A Mortgage Broker Do?
Carolyn Dunion introduces the company and talks about the role of a mortgage broker.
What does a mortgage broker do?
A mortgage broker is an invaluable tool for guiding your way through the mortgage process and exploring what finance is right for you. There’s a lot of different ways you can structure your mortgage. A mortgage advisor will take the time to get to know you as a client and point you in the right direction.
We’ll recommend the most suitable product – sometimes that’s about finding the right deal on the market for you, and sometimes it’s about identifying a lender who will be happy with your circumstances.
What is the difference between going to a mortgage broker like yourselves versus your local high street lender?
If you go to your local high street lender, they can only offer you their own products. And although you might be speaking to someone with the title of ‘mortgage advisor’, they’re not actually able to give you advice. They will find out if they’re able to lend to you, and then offer you the products that they have. You then have to choose – so unless you’re really familiar with what’s involved with different products, that can be quite difficult.
Also, if that particular lender isn’t happy with your circumstances, they might not lend to you or not offer you the amount you need. But another lender might. That’s where the skill of going to a broker comes in – because they know the lenders and their different criteria, and where your case would sit.
It’s as if each lender has a different personality. We can match the client with the lender that has the right personality for them.
Sometimes clients have had no knowledge of financial services and we start at the beginning. We explain things in a way that they understand. Other times we’re dealing with people who are financially sophisticated, in which case we make sure that we’re giving them the advice in a format that suits them.
What services does a mortgage broker offer?
We’re there to help you all through the process. Sometimes we work with estate agents and solicitors on your behalf to keep things moving smoothly. If a client’s self-employed, it’s very common that I’ll have a three-way conversation with them and their accountant.
We guide people through the process, often signposting them to other professionals rather than offering that advice ourselves. It’s making sure that the client understands what happens.
We provide advice on the mortgage product and make sure that it’s appropriate. We also offer advice around insurance that you should consider when you take on a mortgage and buy a property.
Most clients will only be doing a purchase or even a remortgage transaction every five or ten years – or less often – and the process can change in that time. It’s certainly easy to forget what happens. We’re there to make sure you know where you are and that you’re doing all the right things.
Chat With An Expert
When should I see a mortgage broker? At what stage in the process?
The minute you think about mortgages. I’m joking a little bit there, but really, we’re the first port of call. If somebody’s considering their first purchase or thinking of moving, to downsize or upsize, we’re the first people to speak to.
We can help establish affordability, we can work out what’s possible and what’s not. Quite often we will have a conversation with a client and they might not actually end up carrying out the transaction for a year or more, especially if they can’t find the right property.
In the case of First Time Buyers, we might talk to them about how best to start saving their deposit, which might take a period of time to accumulate. We’re very happy to do that.
When was McKendry Dunion founded and how long have you been in the industry?
McKendry Dunion Financial was founded in 2015 by myself and Paul McKendry, my fellow director. I actually didn’t start off life as a mortgage advisor. Believe it or not, I started out as a music teacher. I thought that teaching was far too much like hard work and I still do – with the one exception of the summer holidays which I’m always envious of.
But I knew it wasn’t right for me. I started developing an interest in property and through that ended up getting into the mortgage market – and I do very much feel that I found my calling in life. It’s a privilege to be part of the important transactions in people’s lives.
I’ve got a lot of clients that have been with us since 2015, and some from before then. I’ve seen them through first purchases, remortgages, families expanding, marriages, extensions… all sorts of things. We might only touch base with each other every couple of years, but it’s lovely to be in that position and to be part of their lives in that way.
Paul has been in financial services a little bit longer than me, although we’ve both been in it for well over 15 years now. We love what we do.
Does it cost for an initial consultation with you?
No, absolutely not. The initial conversation is completely free and with no obligation. We usually take some information from clients so that we can offer meaningful advice.
You’ll sit with a broker either on the phone, in an online meeting or face-to-face and we’ll chat through what you’re hoping to do. We then talk you through things and depending on what you’re hoping to do, we explain the charges that may apply in the whole transaction – be those from ourselves or from other professionals.
Then you’re free to go away and consider whether we’re the right match for you and if you want to go ahead or not. There’s no obligation. Quite often we’ll have a good number of conversations before there are any kind of charges at all. But we’re very transparent about costs and when they apply, but initially it’s completely free.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.
