You work hard to save up your deposit for a home. Fulltime job, maybe a side hustle also. Weekends always feel too short, between family and friends, taking kids to activities, getting the chores done, oh and trying to carve out a bit of time for yourself. That boat or mountain bike, or guitar you bought thinking you’ll get to play on the weekends is collecting dust in the garage. You are too busy, giving your 100% to achieve that dream of buying a house. But have you got professional advice to check you are focusing your efforts in the right way? Do you know how to maximise your lending options?

Imagine, that before you even have enough deposit to start going to open homes, you could talk to someone to make a plan for how you are going to achieve your financial goals. Yes, that’s where a mortgage broker comes it. They are also called financial advisers – that’s because they are professionally qualified to do so much more than just help you fill a loan application. You could fill out forms at the bank yourself! But a financial adviser is like your own HR consultant –they will tell you how to tweak your resume, point out the missing pieces you need to add, and help you get your act together before it is time to submit the documents. A mortgage broker can help determine your KiwiSaver withdrawal criteria, First Home Grant eligibility, ways to consolidate your debt if it’s in your best interests in your specific purchasing scenario and more. And the sweetest bit is, that you can usually get this financial advice for free.

A mortgage broker sees many home loan applications every week. After several years they would have seen almost every scenario. Some of these include:

·      low deposit

·      new or changing jobs

·      buying with friends

·      getting support, guarantors or loans to boost deposit from family

·      proving your income when you are self-employed

·      delayed settlements, or early access

·      nominating different entities

·      highly conditional offers and counter-offers with minimal conditions

·      multi offers, auctions, tenders and private sales.

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"Your mortgage broker is a pro at shopping around for the best deals whether that’s lowest, interest rates, minimal fees, or maximised flexibility of repayments"

A broker has been there, done that. They are up to speed with the most recent changes in lending rules. They are a pro at shopping around for the best deals whether that’s lowest, interest rates, minimal fees, or maximised flexibility of repayments. And rest assured that you would not be getting less lending or a worse deal because the bank is taking some of that money away to pay the broker. The bank would still have to pay the costs of someone prepare the loan application, be it a mortgage adviser, a mobile mortgage manager or a bank employee.

What does a mortgage broker do?

·       Guide you through the house-buying process and save you a lot of time

·       Review your financial situation and determine your goals

·       Recommend ways to optimise or maximise your lending options

·       The broker has detailed knowledge of lending criteria at different banks so can identify your options for the highest approval and purchase price

·       Negotiate rates with the banks on your behalf

·       Liaise with agents, solicitors, valuers and insurers to make the process hassle-free for you

·       If you are going to auction, support you through the process

·       Provide advice on how to grow you deposit or equity faster, or how to pay down debt faster

·       Recommend the best structure for your loan to match your goals

·       Support you when the loan comes up for re-fixing

·       Help you refinance your loans if your situation changes

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"You can talk to a broker well before you have your full deposit together and are ready to start hunting for a house"

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Something that not a lot of people realise, is that you can talk to a broker well before you have your full deposit together and are ready to start hunting for a house. Early advice to set you on the right track can save you years waiting to achieve your goals. This is especially true since the December 2021 changes to the responsible lending rules (Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act) which now require lenders to run much more thorough income and expenses checks on borrowers. The broker can point out in advance ways to tighten your spending habits to improve the strength of your application.

Having a mortgage adviser on your side can be the key to get you ahead of the game. By finding out the rules of the game in advance, you can save yourself from missing out on your dreamhouse. Having the best approval and advice can be the difference between beating the competition or not. An adviser can offer a wider range of services than a someone at the bank, and continue providing support well beyond the approval.

Jeremy Andrews at Key Mortgages is a Qualified Adviser on the Financial Service Providers Register. This means he has completed a strict registration and qualification process. Registered Financial Service Providers must follow robust quality criteria and belong to a dispute resolution scheme. All this helps to give you peace of mind and reassurance of the high quality of the service provided.

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