When you want mortgage advice, where do you look for it? You could of course discuss it with your colleagues at work or your friends at the pub. Informal mortgage advice certainly has its place. And if somebody has been through the process recently, they may know what they’re talking about. But you can’t really sue them if it all goes wrong! If you are looking for mortgage advice that’s a little more formal, your local bank almost certainly employs someone called a “Mortgage Adviser”. If you ask to see this individual, he or she will be very pleasant and friendly, and only too keen to sit down and discuss a mortgage with you. The thing you have to bear in mind is that this person is employed by the bank to sell you THAT BANK’S products – not to advise you about what’s best for YOU. What’s more, the best mortgage for your purposes may be on sale at Better Bank down the road. But the mortgage adviser at Bigger Bank isn’t going to tell you about it. This means that even if the bank where you go for mortgage advice doesn’t happen to stock the most suitable product for you, they will still try to sell you one of their products.
They aren’t going to say “Well actually, none of our products is exactly right for you – try Better Bank down the road. They’ve got just the thing!” Their mortgage adviser’s job might be on the line for saying this as he/she is employed to sell that bank’s products! So where should you look for your mortgage advice? You need to be looking for someone who:
- deals with the whole product range;
- has nothing to gain or lose by recommending a specific product or steering you away from another product;
- has the experience and knowledge to give you the right kind of mortgage advice. You can often find somebody with these qualifications by looking for an Independent Mortgage Broker or Independent Mortgage Adviser. But before dealing with anyone, check that he/she has the necessary experience and qualifications. As you are often reminded, buying a home is probably the biggest transaction of your life. You can’t afford to take chances with your mortgage advice – make sure you find the person best qualified to provide it.