A broker vs a direct approach to mortgage companies

[els 0]

Hello, we had a bad experience with a well known broker, where we had various meetings, submitted and filled in all our paper work ,only then then find out the products offered where not available to a Limited company, whilst this was made very clear at the very first and subsequent meetings. As far as I understand a broker would be more beneficial, as they have greater access to deals/lenders and have the knowledge and relationship with the various lenders/underwriters in place. Whilst we know the basics and will be classed as portfolio landlords, we have just four properties currently al let, although have more in the pipeline. We understand their are maximum number of properties certain companies allow any one company to hold.  We have contacted or found a few lenders on line, whom have had very clear, detailed and concise information, stating their requirements and eligibility requirements. So how does one  go about finding a knowledgeable/reputable broker?  - i know,  how longs a piece of string? Just wondered on other peoples experiences or any tips please? Many thanks Els 😀

[dino v 139]

I'd suggest finding a broker who specialises in BTL and understands the needs of a landlord and is recommended by other landlords. A good broker should be able to understand where you're trying to get to and support that by finding the right products from the right lenders. That's especially important if you're trying to grow over the next few years, as some lenders just won't be right for you.

We've used Simon Allen at Searchlight Finance for a couple of years for ltd company mortgages and everything's gone well - you'll find him posting on here occasionally. Sure others could recommend brokers they've used as well.

[EvolutionBlogger 61]

If you want to make approaches to lenders yourself, then there is no harm. You have complete crontol over your application, and won't repeat your bad experience 

Just be aware that there are a number of lenders that only deal with brokers, so you will be dealing with a subset of the market

[david slater 79]

Sometimes in property when working with supporting professionals, such as brokers,  you have to kiss a few frogs before finding the right one to work with. You can also find that you outgrow them at some point and move to new ones who suit your strategy as it evolves.

I wouldn't give up on brokers just because you had one bad experience, there are plenty of other good ones out there. 

[EvolutionBlogger 61]

On 12/25/2020 at 7:10 PM, david slater said:

Sometimes in property when working with supporting professionals, such as brokers,  you have to kiss a few frogs before finding the right one to work with. You can also find that you outgrow them at some point and move to new ones who suit your strategy as it evolves.

I wouldn't give up on brokers just because you had one bad experience, there are plenty of other good ones out there. 

I agree with you here, but I also think that els has a decent idea

There's no harm in approaching lenders yourself.  The more self sufficient you can become, the further you'll go in property

[Stuart Phillips 235]

@EvolutionBlogger I (unsurprisingly?) dissagree. The vast majority of options are not available direct when it comes to buy to let, especially limited company products. I think the effort in finding a broker thats sound, is a far better use of time than trying to understand the rules and criteria yourself.

Back in the 80's knowing how to maintain a car was sensible. Today, its much more complex. If you recommended someone spend time learning how to change a clutch in a modern car you'd say they were mad! One thing ive learned about business is how to judge the value of your time versus the cost of an expert, and this is one of those times where finding someone good is far better value than trying to keep up yourself.

Searchlight is a good shout, but there are plenty of good BTL specialist brokers around, just make sure they promote BTL as a speciality because your average broker wont do much of it and simply wont know the details.