First-Time Buyer: Do I Need A Mortgage Broker?

Is a mortgage broker worth it for a first-time buyer? Is a mortgage broker helpful for first-time buyers specifically?

When buying your first house, you’ve never experienced this before. You’re reliant on family or friends who may not have done it for years. Your parents may have owned their house for more than 10 or 15 years, and things do change.

The main thing for first-time buyers is to make sure they know that any estate agent always works for the vendor. Their job is to get as much money as they possibly can for that vendor’s property.

That’s their client. It could be the negotiator, the manager, an accompanied viewer, a valuer… everybody involved in that business is trying to get as much money out of you as they can.

But a mortgage broker is actually working for you, the first-time buyer. It isn’t just a case of choosing the cheapest interest rate. We’re here to guide first-time buyers through the process of buying a home.

We help you go through surveys, appoint the right solicitor and understand when to pay for things. When I arrange a mortgage for a first-time buyer, they appoint a solicitor who will normally ask for £300 or £400 upfront. Once you’ve paid that search fee, you’ve lost that money if the property doesn’t go through. So only pay what you have to, and only when it’s due.

You’d apply for the mortgage, and if we arrange a survey rather than a valuation, you’d only pay for that once the mortgage is approved. Once you’ve got the survey back, if you still want to buy that house, that’s when you pay the search fee. Many first-time buyers get bamboozled into paying everything upfront, and lose out if the sale doesn’t go through.

What exactly does a mortgage broker do? How is seeing a broker different from going direct to a bank or lender?

If you go direct to a bank or building society, they can only tell you about their products.

They’re not going to tell you that if you walk 100 yards down the road to another lender you’ll get a cheaper interest rate.

You’re also not dealing with a dedicated mortgage broker that’s there for you 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They work 9 to 5, five days a week – and if they’re on another call you’ll speak to somebody else.

A mortgage broker will explain what it’s like to buy a first house, what you need to do, how to deal with estate agents, how to put an offer in, and how to get your documentation ready.

We’ll organise a solicitor if necessary, or you may have your own.

We help you arrange a survey and go through that report with the client. It might take me three hours to go through that survey before speaking to you, and an hour to talk you through it.

We guide a buyer all the way through the process – when to pay various fees, what to do if there’s an issue on the survey, and how to renegotiate the price or look at work that needs doing. We support you all the way through to completion.

I say this to every first-time buyer – there’s no such thing as a stupid question. You’ve never been through this before, so you won’t know everything. Dealing with a broker is very different from a bank or building society. It’s personal guidance through the journey – not just a service to get your mortgage approved, after which it’s over to you to do everything else.

How do I know if a mortgage broker is trustworthy? Are mortgage brokers regulated?

Mortgage advisors are regulated and authorised directly by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). They will either be part of a network that’s authorised, or personally.

I always suggest a half hour appointment for us to chat through things – if you don’t like what you see, there are other mortgage brokers you might prefer. We don’t get on with everybody, do we? Everyone’s different.

The other thing is to look at reviews. I always ask clients to leave one if they’re happy. As of April 2026, I’ve got more than 450 five-star Google reviews. That’s a good indication of trustworthiness.

Do mortgage brokers work for me or for the lender?

For the applicant, without a shadow of a doubt. We’ve got to prove affordability to a lender, but we work for the client.

What questions should I ask a broker before choosing one?

We offer all our clients a video call so we can meet in person rather than over the phone.

We’ll chat about the procedure of buying a house, and during that conversation, clients ask questions all the time. They often want to know how to make an offer, and I’ll talk about establishing the vendor’s motivation. Why are they selling, and how long has the house been on the market? Are they in a rush?

That indicates whether you can go in under the asking price, at that price or over it. I talk to my clients about the market and what to expect to manage their expectations. The questions tend to be organic – it’s a chat, and it instigates natural questions.

With a first-time buyer, I try not to bore them or try to teach them everything. It tends to be 45 to 55 minutes. In the first 30 minutes we never even mention mortgages. I gather all their information, and it’s more important to discuss what the market’s like, how to make an offer, and how to get in a position to buy a property.

The mortgage is actually secondary to the process of buying a house. That’s not something that’s taught in school. Your parents may not have bought a home for 10 or 15 years and a lot has happened in that time. Friends can be helpful, but they can also misinform, so it’s nice to start from scratch.

Clients find it really useful. They tell me they enjoy the chat and learn so much. The feedback is very good.

Can a broker explain the mortgage process step by step?

Yes, as we’ve already discussed, I go a step further – it’s the purchase, not just the mortgage process.

I’ll also explain the times that things can go quiet or when we need to act very quickly. With the right mortgage broker, it’s not just about arranging a mortgage, it’s walking through the process.

Does using a broker save time? Can a broker help speed up mortgage approval?

If you spoke to my clients, they would say yes. We can streamline that service and I can arrange a mortgage in 20 minutes. If you rang a bank or building society, you would be booking in a two-hour call.

I would have gathered everything I need over two or three shorter appointments – while we talk about the market, estate agents and a property link you’ve sent me for my thoughts.

I then place the mortgage with the right lender – and lenders have completely different service levels. I arranged a mortgage recently where the cheapest bank had poor service levels, and the bank in the second spot was only £2 a month more expensive.

The client decided to stay with the original bank, which took five weeks to authorise the mortgage. But they understood it would take a while, and they preferred to save money than time.

How much does a mortgage broker cost? Do I pay the broker directly or are they paid by the lender?

To arrange a mortgage for a first-time buyer, my fee is £395. It has been for the last five years – it’s never increased or decreased. That’s payable on completion, so you pay on the result rather than the application.

Some brokers charge upfront, and some charge for a Decision in Principle. Others charge for a mortgage offer. My opinion is that the job’s only done when a client sends me a picture of themselves walking into their new home.

I was speaking to a mortgage broker recently who doesn’t charge a fee. When we talked about the service they offered, it wasn’t as comprehensive as mine. Clients don’t get a Rolls Royce service for the price of an Escort.

He arranged more mortgages than I do, but he couldn’t offer that personal service. So some brokers don’t charge a fee – while others charge much more than we do. Brokers in London might charge £995, or £500 upfront and £500 at mortgage offer.

It’s different wherever you are. That’s why I would encourage you to speak to a few brokers and see who you want to work with.

Is using a broker more expensive than going direct to a lender? Are there any hidden fees or commissions?

There are no hidden fees. Because we’re governed by the FCA, everything is declared on the quotation. There’s nothing hidden. That detail also comes through on the mortgage offer.

Using a mortgage broker can be more expensive. If the cheapest deal was with Halifax, you could arrange it direct and you wouldn’t have to pay my £395. But you get so much for that fee.

We work out which lender to use. Over two or three appointments with you we talk through how to buy a house and how to put an offer in. You may have offered on two or three properties beforehand. If a sale falls through, I won’t charge you.

If you don’t think I’m worth the fee on completion, tell me and there’s no fee. In 25 years, having arranged thousands of mortgages, I’ve never had a client that has an issue with the fee.

Is there anything else we need to know about mortgage brokers from a first-time buyer perspective?

Just have a chat with a mortgage broker and see what you think. Do you want to work with them? Do you trust them to take you from where you are now to moving into your first home? If the answer is yes, you’ve picked the right broker.

Key Takeaways:

• Mortgage brokers work for the first-time buyer, providing personal guidance throughout the entire process of buying a home, unlike estate agents who work for the vendor.
• They offer comprehensive support that goes beyond arranging the mortgage, including advice on dealing with estate agents, making offers, appointing solicitors, and interpreting survey reports.
• Brokers advise first-time buyers on when to pay various fees, such as solicitor search fees, to avoid losing money if the property purchase falls through prematurely.
• Unlike lenders who only present their own products and offer standard 9-to-5 service, a broker can compare deals and provide a more dedicated, personal service.
• Trustworthiness can be confirmed as mortgage advisors are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and clients are encouraged to check their reviews.
  
  

YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP WITH YOUR MORTGAGE REPAYMENTS.

The mortgage provider may also pay commission to your Broker. This will be declared and disclosed within your documentation. This is not a cost to the client.

Is a broker more useful if I’m self-employed or have irregular income?

Certainly, in more specialised circumstances a broker really does come into their own. Sometimes we won’t be using the high street lenders.

I’ve got a client this week who has only been self-employed for one year, and he would struggle to find a high street lender to accept that. But as a broker, we generally know immediately which lenders will and won’t do it.

What if I’m buying with a partner or family member? Can a mortgage broker help then?

Absolutely. A broker can look at all scenarios and it’s very common for people to buy with a partner or family member. I’m helping two sisters at the moment who are buying together.

They want to move out of the family home, but they can’t afford it individually. They are buying a three-bedroom house because the two incomes give them the ability to buy a larger property.

How long does the mortgage broker process usually take?

I’m there from the very start, when you begin looking at properties, right until you get the keys to your new house.

It’s a wraparound service from start to finish. It isn’t the case that you get your mortgage and then you’re on your own. If a client’s struggling with a solicitor or there’s some wording that they don’t understand, they’d contact me.

When you’ve had the survey done, you’d call me and we’d go through that together. We’re there all the way though to help with much more than just the mortgage.

Is using a broker less stressful than applying myself?

I think it’s a lot less stressful. You’re not having to deal with the lender and a lot of the solicitor communications are filtered through myself. You’ve got another pair of eyes looking at your survey.

These are all things that I deal with every single day, while a first-time buyer will hopefully only ever see one survey. A broker makes things significantly less stressful than doing it on your own. You’ve got somebody that works for you.

When you’re buying a property, you’re usually buying through an estate agent who works for the vendor. Even if you get on really well with them, they still work for the seller and their job is to get the most money for their client.

My job is to work for the buyer. We make sure you don’t get strong-armed into doing something you don’t want, by walking and talking you through every step of the way.

Many times over the years I’ve said to a client that I don’t think they should buy a certain house. Whether there’s an issue with a survey or another problem, we make sure you won’t be badgered into it by the estate agent – as you’ve got somebody that works for you; your broker.

In a lot of my Google reviews clients say how well they’ve felt supported over the journey. It’s not always a perfect outcome, but you will be walked and talked through every step.

When might I not need a mortgage broker? Would there be any scenario where someone wouldn’t need one?

I can’t really see one. Even on a simple mortgage application, a mortgage broker would save you some money. You might decide to stay with your existing lender, and we will walk you through that and hopefully find some savings.

Can I start with a mortgage broker and then apply directly?

You wouldn’t ordinarily do that, because if you’ve got your trust in that mortgage broker, we talk you through every step and guide you through the process. There’s no benefit in then doing your mortgage direct.

You can do it, though, if you didn’t get on with that broker. In fact, a couple of weeks ago I had some clients buying a non-standard construction who’d been dealing with a different mortgage broker who had no experience of non-standard construction.

The clients found our website and therefore came to me – I then talked to the lenders that would accept this, they applied with me and the mortgage has gone through. It was just that the mortgage broker hadn’t been in the industry long and didn’t have much experience in that area.

Should I compare broker recommendations with my own research?

That’s what your mortgage broker should do. We touched on this previously, where we explained that we might not choose the cheapest lender for various reasons.

The cheapest lenders might not lend you enough to buy the property, or they may not take certain income into account – whereas another will. For every client I arrange a mortgage for, I write a recommendation letter after submitting the application giving detailed reasons for using that lender.

It’s not always the cheapest one. It might be down to how much you can borrow, or current service levels for a lender. That’s what you’re looking at when you receive recommendations. Perhaps I’ve arranged a mortgage for you with an interest rate at 4.5%, and you then see a lender at 4.29%. You can ask me why I haven’t used them – there will be a very good reason.

That lender may not lend you enough. I’ve done the affordability calculations and they’ll only lend you £200,000 and you wanted £230,000. They were the cheapest, but wouldn’t lend what you need. A good mortgage broker would always talk you through that.

What are the pros and cons of using a mortgage broker?

If we start with the negatives, in most cases, a mortgage broker charges a fee for their services. I would charge £395 for a first-time buyer on completion, for example. There’s nothing to pay up front, nothing to get you a mortgage offer and nothing to initially apply.

Only when you move into your house is that fee payable.

If you arranged it yourself, you wouldn’t pay that £395 – but I would hope to save you at least £395 through my advice, in the choice of lender or getting you cheaper payments. I ask every client on completion whether I was worth my £395, and in all the years I’ve done this, they always say yes..

It might not always be related to the mortgage. It could be advice around the solicitor, with the survey, on protection and insurance or indemnity policies. There could be a million different reasons, because every mortgage and every first-time buyer is different. It is a little bit more expensive, but as always, you get what you pay for.

How do I decide if a broker is right for me?

Speak with a few brokers and see who you get on with. It’s an expensive exercise, buying a house – it’s the most money you’re ever going to spend, so you need to be comfortable with the person you’re going through that process with.

If that mortgage broker doesn’t give you confidence, look for another one. You need to have that gut feeling that you want to deal with this person, as they are central to your mortgage journey.

Key Takeaways

• A mortgage broker is particularly useful for those in specialised circumstances, such as being newly self-employed or having irregular income, as they know which non-high street lenders will accept these applications.
• The broker provides a comprehensive, end-to-end service, offering support from the start of property searching until you receive the keys, including assistance with solicitors and understanding property surveys.
• Working with a broker significantly reduces stress by filtering communications with the lender and acting as an advocate for the buyer, ensuring you are not pressured into a purchase by the seller’s estate agent.
• Recommendations from a good mortgage broker prioritise factors like the amount you can borrow and current service levels, meaning they may choose a lender that is not the cheapest but is the best fit for your needs.
• Although brokers typically charge a fee payable upon completion, the value of their advice and potential savings often make the expense worthwhile
  
  

YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP WITH YOUR MORTGAGE REPAYMENTS.