The Mortgage Store

Ultimately what we do is manage the full process so that you as a client don’t have to. There are different aspects to my job, but the priority is to make sure we’re getting the most cost effective and suitable mortgage product for you. We can look at various different lenders to save as much money as possible over the term of the mortgage. A few clients come to me initially thinking they can borrow a certain amount of money. I’ll see if you can borrow a little bit more than you expect, which widens your scope. You can look at a few properties that you may not originally have thought were in reach. It’s also important for me to be there as a guide, to support you through the whole process to make it as stress free and smooth as possible. My clients know that if they need to contact me for any reason whatsoever, I’ll be there. Lastly we will look at insurance and protection, because I need to make sure that once you’ve got yourself a property, you can’t lose it if anything happens due to illness, injury or anything like that. So there are a few different aspects to what a mortgage broker does, but ultimately it’s to support you through that whole process.

Lenders do a good job, but they can’t look at other lenders. All they can offer you is their own products and interest rates. That means potentially missing out on more suitable products with different providers that might be more cost effective over the term of the mortgage. As a broker I can look at all the options. Secondly, the local high street lender is really just aiming to sell their mortgage product to you. My aim as a broker is to give you an excellent level of service throughout the whole process. If you have any issues with solicitors, estate agents or anything I can help. I advise you at every step – a lender won’t offer you that kind of service. We offer a tailor-made service to every individual. I’ll speak to a client, see what they’re looking to do and we’ll work it out together.

It’s entirely up to you and how much help you want… but I’ll put offers into estate agents on your behalf or help you decide how much to offer on a property. I’ve worked within an estate agency previously, so I’ve got a lot of experience in negotiating, and I know what makes an estate agent tick. Once the offer is agreed, I’ll liaise with estate agents and solicitors to make sure they’ve got all the relevant and correct documentation. So you don’t need to worry about that side of things.

An Agreement in Principle is where we’ve done an affordability check and credit check to make sure that on paper everything looks good for a mortgage to go through. I will usually do that quite early on. When I first speak to a client we’ll get all the facts and figures and make sure everything looks okay. Then we’ll run you through an Agreement in Principle so that when you do find a property to offer on, you’re first in the queue. You’re in prime position to get that offer accepted. If you haven’t got an Agreement in Principle an estate agent usually won’t accept your offer.

Yes, pretty much all of my clients will come back for a remortgage, or I will contact them a few months beforehand to make sure everything’s in place. Then, when your original product expires we can move straight onto the next one, without risking running on to the Standard Variable Rate. That can be a lot more expensive. I do get quite a lot of clients looking at Buy to Lets and going down that route. There are a few different things to consider on Buy to Let, but I can support you on it all.

Mortgage protection is a very big thing, because it’s all well and good to save up for years to get your deposit, but you don’t know what the future is going to bring. God forbid something happens and you become ill, get injured or worst case, you pass away. You need to make sure that you’ve got protection in place so that whoever you leave behind is looked after financially. You might not be able to work any more and your income stops. We can make sure money keeps coming in to pay the mortgage and other bills. If you start missing payments it’ll affect your credit file, which makes things more difficult in the future. So it’s vitally important that at the very least, we look at protection. Then you know what’s available and can make an educated decision on what you want.

As early as possible, to be honest. I’ll sometimes speak to clients who don’t want to do too much until they find a property. But the problem with doing that is you can find a property, but by the time you have all the documentation ready for an Agreement in Principle, somebody else may have swooped in and taken that property. As soon as you’re ready to offer, documents go in, the offer gets agreed and it’s your property. So the earlier, the better. Affordability is important as well. Again, people might be looking at properties for £140,000 when they could afford £170,000 – you don’t know for certain how much you could borrow until you sit down with a broker. If you’re looking at selling a property, come and see me before you even put it on the market. We’ll see what’s the lowest you can realistically afford to sell for to move forward. Then everything you make on top of that is a bonus – potentially giving you a higher deposit. With remortgages I generally start looking around about six to seven months prior to your current product expiring. The majority of offers will be valid for six months, so it means we can tie into a rate at around that six-month mark. If rates improve we can look at changing it to a better rate – if they get worse then we’ve safely secured that original rate. So you get the best of both worlds.

The Mortgage Store Bradford was founded in April 2023 – so only quite recently. I’ve been working as a broker since the beginning of 2016 – and about five years of that was working within an estate agent. I then spent three years in a specialist new build mortgage brokerage. Taking my experience from both of those I then set up The Mortgage Store Bradford. I support anybody, anywhere – you don’t have to be based around the Bradford area. I’ve got clients based all over the UK. Prior to moving to mortgages I actually worked in insurance for three years. So I’ve got quite a lot of experience within the financial services industry.

No, absolutely, not. An initial consultation is for you to get an idea of what you’re looking to do, see if it’s feasible and then take things from there. That conversation is absolutely free of charge.

I’m on Facebook, so follow me there at The Mortgage Man Mullen and on Instagram I share regular video tips and things like that. If you have any questions you can send me a message or if you’re looking at doing anything – purchasing, remortgaging etc, get in touch and then we can get the process moving for you.

Think carefully before securing other debts against your home.

You may have to pay an early repayment charge to your existing lender if you remortgage.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.

The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate most Buy to Let Mortgages.