A mortgage broker is someone who can access a wide range of mortgage products across a variety of lenders and can present a range of options to you, suitable for your needs.

Using a mortgage advisor is much quicker than visiting multiple high street banks or building societies and can save you hours of time on the internet searching for deals, only to find out that you may not meet the lender’s eligibility criteria.

You don’t have to – you can liaise directly with many banks and building societies yourself. But do you know if they will offer you the best rates?

Will you be speaking to the same person every time?

Do you trust the call centre operative you’re speaking to?

Will you know all the questions to ask about rate changes, early repayment charges, portable mortgages, buy to let mortgage criteria, arrangement fees, eligibility criteria?

Do you have the time to liaise with the lender as your application progresses or if there are issues with your mortgage valuation?

That’s why working with us is the easiest, safest, and most trusted way to secure the most appropriate mortgage deal for you.

There are many advantages of working with us, including:

• No live chats, call centres, or being passed from person to person. You’ll deal with just one person who will work with you throughout the process. We’ll do your application, upload all the documents, deal with the lender, and answer all your questions. 
• Bespoke recommendations, suited to your personal circumstances. Our specialist software allows us to search through hundreds of lenders and mortgage products quickly and efficiently, in order to find the most suitable mortgage product for you.
• A smooth and efficient process. We all know buying and moving home can be an incredibly stressful experience. We’re here to make it that little bit easier. Our extensive experience of the mortgage market means that we know what information lenders need, their eligibility criteria, and which lenders are flexible, which means we can process your application quickly and effectively.
• The majority of our clients do not incur a fee from us. The only time this is required is if the loan amount is under £100,000 or if we are arranging a Buy to Let mortgage. We are paid a fee by the lender, but we are not tied to any lender and this fee is not passed onto our clients.

Initial Consultation

Your initial appointment with our firm is completely free of charge.

Commission and Broker Fees

When you decide to proceed with a mortgage transaction through our services, in most cases, we receive a commission (also known as a procuration fee) from the lender for arranging the mortgage. This commission typically covers our time and services. We will disclose the exact amount we receive from the lender in any mortgage quote we provide to you. For the majority of our clients, no broker fee is required.

Situations Where Broker Fees May Apply

There are specific instances where we may need to charge a broker fee. These circumstances are outlined below:

Broker Fees Payable Upon Application (Non-Refundable)

1. Smaller Loan Amounts (Residential Purchase & Remortgages)
   A broker fee of £399 will be charged if the loan amount is under £100,000.
2. Mortgage Renewals (Residential and Buy-to-Let)
   For existing clients of Oak Tree Mortgages, we will waive our broker fee when renewing a mortgage with the lender, provided the loan amount is less than £100,000.
3. Complex Cases
   In certain situations where extra work is required due to the complexity of the case, we will inform you at the end of the initial free appointment if a fee will be applicable. The broker fee for complex cases is £399.
   Examples of more complex residential cases include Shared Ownership, Right to Buy, and Joint Borrower Sole Proprietor Mortgages.
4. Multiple Sources of Gifted Deposit (UK Funds)
   If the mortgage deposit is being gifted by more than two individuals, we charge £50 per additional giftor. This fee covers the enhanced due diligence required.
5. Gifted Deposit (Foreign Funds)
   If the mortgage deposit is from abroad, we reserve the right to charge £50 per giftor for the additional due diligence required.
6. Buy-to-Let/Holiday Let Mortgages (Purchase & Remortgage)
   A broker fee of £399 applies.
7. Ported Cases with Reduced Lender Commission
   A broker fee of up to 0.15% of the mortgage amount may apply if a lender offers a reduced procuration fee.
8. Transfer of Equity Applications
   If the lender does not pay a commission to the broker, we will charge a broker fee of £499.
9. Self-Build Mortgages
   A broker fee of £1,500 is charged for self-build mortgage applications.

Broker Fees with Deferred Payment Option (Non-Refundable)

1. Debt Consolidation Remortgages
   If unsecured debts are being repaid using the proceeds of a remortgage, we charge a broker fee of £399. This fee can either be paid at the time of the mortgage application or deferred until completion.
2. Smaller Loan Amounts (Residential Purchase)
   In some cases where a client is downsizing, clearing debt, and paying the broker fee upfront would cause financial hardship, we may allow the £399 broker fee to be paid on completion of the mortgage.

Miscellaneous Services (Non-Credit Broking)

1. Mortgage Capacity Letter (Court Letter for Divorce or Separation)
   We charge £399 per report for a mortgage capacity letter. If any changes are required after the initial report is provided, a charge of £100 per hour will apply.

Refunds of Fees

You may request a refund of fees paid prior to the submission of your application to the mortgage lender.
If we have agreed to defer a broker fee until the completion of the mortgage and the mortgage application results in a mortgage offer, but the offer expires without completion, the broker fee becomes payable.
No refund will be given if:

• An Agreement in Principle (AIP) is obtained, but the application is later declined.
• We are unable to obtain an AIP, and the application is subsequently declined by the lender due to the property being unsuitable or a change in your circumstances after the application is submitted.

Refunds outside of these circumstances will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Non-Payment of Broker Fees

Our broker fee is payable either upon application or at the time of mortgage completion, as agreed prior to your application. If the broker fee remains unpaid, we reserve the right to take legal action to recover the debt, which may affect your credit history.

We prefer to meet on Zoom via video link. This is time efficient and offers most people a lot of flexibility. It saves any rush to get to our office and parking issues. We can share our screen with you, so you will be as involved as if you were sat in one of our offices. For some people, meeting in person is important, so if you prefer an in person meeting, please make this clear when you book your meeting.

Use our ‘Book Now’ link to arrange a convenient appointment. However if you need to make a face-to-face meeting please call us on 0121 733 8833 to arrange a meeting at our Solihull office in Shirley.

We work with most of them but there are a few that don’t work with mortgage brokers, such as First Direct.