There’s barely a single area of our increasingly busy lives where we don’t have the option to do things for ourselves at home in front of a laptop, and the process of choosing a mortgage product is no different.
From online grocery shopping to switching your car insurance or energy supplier, increased competition for business has put control of just about everything in life within one click of a mouse or swipe of a finger.
But is that a good thing? As with most things, the answer is yes … and no.
When it comes to having your groceries or that last minute Christmas present delivered, it’s very difficult to argue against the convenience that’s to be had from doing your shopping online. Pick and pay for it one day, have it delivered the next – and if you happen to forget an urgent item, there’s usually always the option to go out to a real shop to get it.
But for the more important things in life, a little caution is healthy. This is especially true when it comes to mortgages. Whilst there’s no harm in using price comparison websites to get a feel for what might be available in the market, limiting your search just to those products you’ll find on comparison sites may risk missing out on a product that’s better-suited to you.
Here, then, are 5 good reasons why it might pay to look beyond the online ‘high street’ to finance your property.
You won’t have access to all the products that are available
The simple truth is that as comprehensive as the price comparison or lender sites might look, they may not include every product you might want to consider.
At Oportfolio, for example, we work with a wide range of lenders with whom we have long-standing relationships, and because we are Appointed Representatives of PRIMIS Mortgage Network we often have access to mortgage products you simply wouldn’t know about if you searched for your mortgage yourself.
From attractive fixed rates and fixed term mortgages, to incentivised products that offer you a saving in the overall cost of your mortgage, a professional mortgage broker will be able to properly assess your needs and then find suitable products to review with you.
You probably don’t have the market knowledge to make the best choice
Unless you’ve worked in the mortgage industry there’s a very good chance you won’t have the expertise or knowledge to lead you to the right product. There’s also a danger that you might overlook future opportunities and/or risks in your own life that will – or should – influence or shape your decision.
We’ve helped hundreds of people to find the right finance to buy or improve their dream home and we know the right questions to ask – not just of prospective lenders, but also of you – to ensure your mortgage will be fit for purpose today and in the years to come.
DIY mortgages can be stressful
There’s no doubt that applying for a mortgage can be a tense and stressful time – it’s not by accident that making an application, together with the actual practical process of moving house – is recognised as one of the most stressful events in life.
If you decide to go it alone, you’ll be dealing with your prospective lender yourself, which takes time, and will have the added burden of having to follow up on your application and check on its progress.
Stringent affordability criteria that lenders must observe also means you’ll need more detailed personal and financial information than was the case before the financial crisis of 2008. In fact, if you’ve not applied for a new mortgage or additional borrowing since then, you’ll find the landscape has changed significantly.
By contrast, working with a professional mortgage broker like Oportfolio will take the guesswork out of what information is needed and we certainly work with all our clients to fill out their application with them. That means we’re as sure as we can be when we submit the information that everything the lender needs to know is included.
Your broker should then manage the process from start to finish, so you can get on with the important things in life whilst you wait for the lender’s decision.
You’re at the mercy of your own knowledge
Reputable mortgage brokers are trained, qualified and regulated, which means there’s a certain level of reassurance for you that the advice you’re given and the products they recommend are the result of expert knowledge.
By contrast, if you choose the DIY route, you’re only as good as the information you have and the things you don’t know that you don’t know. If you apply for and agree a mortgage that later proves to be the wrong product for you or doesn’t offer the same benefits as you might otherwise have had, you’ll have less recourse to resolve things.
It takes time you probably don’t have
Mortgages are the lifeblood of a professional mortgage broker’s business. That’s what they do all day, every day. You, on the other hand, probably have a job, family and other demands to juggle – and unlike applying for some credit cards, applying for a mortgage isn’t something you can just do when you have ten minutes to spare.
You’ll spend time rooting out information you need, time filling out the application, time on the phone with the lender going through the application and time chasing the application once it’s complete – even if you get a decision in principle reasonably quickly.
There are lots of things in life that make sense to do yourself but applying for a mortgage isn’t necessarily one of them.
For a stress- and hassle-free experience that is more likely to give you the mortgage product that’s most suitable for you, it pays to have expert help from a professional mortgage broker like Oportfolio that can manage the whole process from end to end.
If you’d like to talk to us about how our expert and friendly advisers can help you achieve success with your mortgage application, call us for a no-obligation chat.
To find out more about our friendly and professional mortgage service, fees and what we can do to help make sure you’re not paying over the odds for your mortgage, why not visit www.oportfolio.co.uk or give us a call on 020 7371 5063.
Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
Oportfolio mortgage broker Ltd fees are payable on application. We charge a broker fee for property purchases of £495 and a remortgage/further advance fee of £395. Our product transfer fee is £295.
