MORTGAGE ADVICE IN EDINBURGH AND LOTHIANS IS OUR COMMITMENTBY DANIEL MCLARDY
As a member company of the Stonebridge Group we are proud to be part of something bigger – a network of over 450 mortgage advisors throughout the UK. This means that we carry significance with lenders, who give us access to competitive deals, some of which are exclusive to our network. This can give the impression that we are a large and impersonal company, but I’d like express that we are very much a local mortgage advice service for Edinburgh and Lothians
THE MAJORITY OF OUR CLIENTS ARE FROM EDINBURGH AND SURROUNDING AREA
We are authorised to arrange mortgages for clients throughout the UK, and we are not unaccustomed to providing our mortgage advice service at distance from clients. However, the larger majority of our customers are from Edinburgh and surrounding area, and we very much like this state-of-affairs
BEING LOCAL CAN CONTRIBUTE TO A BETTER CLIENT-ADVISOR RELATIONSHIP
The advantage of focusing our mortgage advice within Edinburgh is being able to meet in person and gain the essential mutual trust that allows us to be an effective advisor, and you an effective client and mortgage applicant. Whether we meet you for the initial consultation, or further down the line on completing mandatory ID checks, the vast majority of our Edinburgh clients will come to our George Street office and “see the whites of our eyes”. We have learnt that the value of this cannot be underestimated, and the more personal the service, the more effective and efficient it is likely to be
“BUT A COMPANY COMMITTED TO GIVING A FEE FREE SERVICE TO THE MAJORITY OF CLIENTS, CAN'T POSSIBLY GIVE A PERSONAL SERVICE!”
I understand why it might be easy to think this, but again I would like to address this misconception. Firstly, we take the view that we do not provide “free mortgage advice”. In our opinion, this can give the impression that we are not paid for arranging a mortgage, when in actual fact we are – by the lender. We receive a percentage of the loan amount, typically between 0.25 and 0.35%, depending on the lender. Correct, we do not charge a broker fee to the greater majority of our clients, but ultimately we do get paid fairly to give a reputable mortgage advice service to Edinburgh. This doesn’t require us to be impersonal or “volume led” to operate a viable business, giving personal mortgage advice with a local Edinburgh focus. I must note that although most of our clients receive a completely fee free service, those with non-standard or complex cases may be required to pay a fee up to £395, agreed in advance and only payable when we achieve a mortgage offer. Sometimes the commission paid by the lender isn't adequate compensation for the work involved in processing cases of a certain profile
TO CONCLUDE, WE ARE TRULY YOUR EDINBURGH MORTGAGE ADVICE SERVICE
Our mortgage advice service is very much for Edinburgh and Lothians residents, and I hope that I’ve done a good job of making our commitment clear. We don’t mean any irreverence to anyone further afield who may be interested in our service, and we invite you to freely contact us should you be interested in our mortgage advice service. Any interest in our company is a privilege we appreciate with humility, but we cannot deny that we consider ourselves a part of the Edinburgh community
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