Contractor mortgage brokers

A question about : Contractor mortgage brokers

Any contractors have any recommendations for specialist mortgage brokers they've used?

I've come across a few, but the spiel on their websites sounds a bit too good to be true, so would like to hear people's experiences.

Cheers

Pete

Best answers:

• My personal experience with one of the main contractor brokers was very positive. They are *free*, they get paid by the lender.
  They have relationships with the lenders who accept contractors and have thorough knowledge of the requirements specific to contractors. They should be able to guide to the right lender and product.
  From what I can see, applying directly can lead to waste of time.
  I am sure there are other smaller brokers who maybe provide a more personal service, but I was happy enough. I would use them again.
  Also, there is another big contractor broker which have a fee, I have not used them, so I cannot comment.
  PM me if you want the name of the broker I have used, but I think it should be obvious.
• I am a contractor specialist broker, and can tell you that it's well worth speaking with someone who does understand what you do, as I speak to a lot of people who have been told by brokers that they can get them a mortgage, only to come unstuck.
  I'd agree with oli_ro above, that applying direct can lead to a waste of time and money.
  For clarity, there are four main contractor specialist brokers; Contractor Mortgages Made Easy (us), Freelancer Financials, Contractor Financials and Contractor Money. All of whom specialise in finding solutions for contractors, and I think only one of those is 'fee free'. Whilst I wouldn't say they can't help (I genuinely can't remember which one it is - it isn't us), the feedback from clients time and time again is that 'you get what you pay for' in this area.
  It is an awful lot more work than a 'standard' mortgage application whereby often you send an application with no supporting documents and wait to be contacted, but I do also appreciate that people sometimes don't want to pay a fee.
  My advice would be to speak to a few of the contractor specialists, just for an initial chat, and see who you feel more confident and comfortable with. This is key to the broker/client relationship as you need to trust your broker and that they're doing the best thing for you. Then have a look at their fee structure (on the 'Initial Disclosure Document' that you'll get probably by email after the call) and go from there.
  Whatever you do, good luck, and feel free to ask any questions on here as we have a wealth of very knowledgeable people on the mortgage forums here who can be of great benefit.
  Best wishes,
  Mark