Online mortgage advisors compared
How do online mortgage advisors work?
Digital mortgage advisors enable you to carry out most of the mortgage comparison and application process online, with no need of speaking to a mortgage broker in person or over the phone. Instead you just submit details about your mortgage to a chat box, online form or selecting options in an app.
The process can usually be done in just 15 minutes – much faster than speaking to a broker or carrying out extensive mortgage searches yourself.
However, there will still be some paperwork involved, and some human interaction will always be used at some point in order to ensure your application is correct and legally binding.
Can online mortgage advisors prevent over-borrowing?
Even though tighter regulations were introduced recently protecting buyers from overborrowing, nothing is foolproof.
Traditionally, affordability assessments have been used to see how much you spend and how much you earn. A human mortgage adviser will go through your bank statements and take all of your outgoings into account when recommending a mortgage.Arguably, an algorithm is less able to make judgements on whether you can really afford to borrow the maximum amount available to you for your mortgage.
Pros and cons of using an online mortgage advisor
- Flexibility: there's no need for face-to-face meetings or phone calls before getting recommendations, which means you're not restricted to office hours.
- Less paperwork: papers are replaced with online forms which you can fill out at your convenience. Some services will even help you with these as well, which can potentially minimise human error. You'll be asked to provide documents to verify your identity and finances, but often these can just be scanned and sent over.
- Speed: the use of technology and algorithms means your mortgage options can be found more quickly than in a manual human search.
- Low/no fees: in most cases, you won't need to pay for the advice you receive from online mortgage brokers.
Cons of online mortgage advisors
- Flexibility: there's no need for face-to-face meetings or phone calls before getting recommendations, which means you're not restricted to office hours.
- Less paperwork: papers are replaced with online forms which you can fill out at your convenience. Some services will even help you with these as well, which can potentially minimise human error. You'll be asked to provide documents to verify your identity and finances, but often these can just be scanned and sent over.
- Speed: the use of technology and algorithms means your mortgage options can be found more quickly than in a manual human search.
- Low/no fees: in most cases, you won't need to pay for the advice you receive from online mortgage brokers.