Everyone loves to hate the middleman, don’t they? For years now, middlemen have been looked down on, the subject of people’s jokes and disliked for what is often perceived as taking a cut without adding any value.
Of course, there are middlemen that live up to this reputation. But then again, there are many company employees UK-wide that get away with not adding as much value as they perhaps should whilst taking a salary. Isn’t this the same? That’s probably a topic for another time (and probably another website), so let’s keep it to mortgages.
Besides, it seems as though the middleman’s fortunes might be changing following an article in The Telegraph, which revealed that some of the UK’s largest middlemen including Purplebricks, the online estate agent, and Cazoo, the online car retailer, are in trouble.
Why is this, then?
The rise of the middleman
According to journalist Matthew Lynn, it’s because ‘The middlemen are a lot more useful that the tech disruptors realised. They know the market, and they know where the customers are and how much they will pay. And those skills will still be valuable for a long time to come.’
As an award-winning Guildford mortgage broker that’s been helping people get a mortgage in Surrey since 2005, we’ve never been questioned about the value we add – despite being a middleman (or intermediary, as we prefer). And the reason is quite simple: we know we add value.
When it comes to applying for a mortgage in the UK, there are two main options: using a mortgage broker or going direct to lender.
Benefits of using a mortgage broker
Most people are time poor. They simply don’t have the time to visit a lender direct, go through what is often a two-hour interview and then repeat with another lender as part of the ‘shopping around’ process.
And why would you when a mortgage broker’s job is to do it for you? As a team of Guildford mortgage advisers, we not only shop around on our clients’ behalf, but we also have access to the best UK mortgage deals, many of which the general UK population can’t access.
And then there’s the admin. Having to field emails and calls from financial institutions can be onerous. Again, our mortgage brokerage in Guildford handles ALL of that for you.
Finally, a good UK mortgage broker will be constantly appraising multiple deals by multiple lenders at any given time, so they know the entire market, not just the portfolio of products on offer by one institution.
Benefits of going direct to lender
Honestly, the standard, unconsidered response would be ‘it cuts out the middleman’ – but for the reasons explained above, why would you want to?
Ultimately, middlemen aren’t bad. It’s just the bad middleman that are. So, when it comes to choosing a mortgage broker, make sure you find a good one.
Looking to apply for a mortgage? Contact Complete Mortgages, a team of award-winning mortgage advisers in Guildford, on 01483 238280 or by e-mailing info@complete-mortgages.co.uk.
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