A mortgage broker will typically help you find the best mortgage for your personal circumstances, and will advise you of the best lender for your own requirements. They will talk to you about the lending criteria and guide you through the application process from start to finish. A good mortgage broker, will also offer additional services which go hand in hand with mortgages and one of these is insurance.

Any homeowner will know that it’s imperative to take out insurance of some kind – whether it’s buildings and contents insurance, life insurance to cover the outstanding mortgage if something were to happen to you, income protection to name just three. Often it’s good to talk to a financial expert rather than research the best insurance deals as they will be aware of the whole of the market not just one or two companies available to you. Often the comparison websites will only give you a small selection of companies that are listed and so often you won’t get the best company for your requirements. A mortgage broker can delve deep into your circumstances and work with you to get the best policy after giving you in depth insurance advice.

There are several types of insurances that you should consider. Here are a few that your mortgage broker should be able to advise you on:

Income protection: Do you know how many months you can cover your financial outgoings without working if you were to suddenly lose your job? Income protection helps you to cover your outgoings if you find that you can’t work due to illness or accident. It really does help to remove stress and worry especially if you have a mortgage secured on your home.

Life cover: Taking out an insurance policy for life cover is really important for the future welfare of your family especially if you have young children and a spouse who relies on your income. Taking out a policy means that financial commitments are taken care of in the event of your death and your loved ones are comfortable and can stay within the family home. 

Critical illness: Unfortunately many people suffer from critical illness and with the medical care being as it is luckily there’s a good chance you will survive to old age. This is good news but you firstly need to consider whether during the period of your illness will your current income be maintained, and secondly whether you will be able to return to your previous employment.

Accident, sickness and unemployment: This is a policy to cover you if you cannot work for a certain amount of time, but unlike income protection it is payable for a specific period of time until you get back on your feet. Policies will vary as to the period of time that you are covered.

Buildings and contents: You are legally responsible to have buildings insurance when you exchange contracts on a house purchase, so you need a broker to advise you on a competitive policy that gives superior cover. 

Gadgets: With the advancement in technology, we are all in possession of gadgets, whether it’s a mobile phone, laptop computer, iPad, Satellite Navigation system, camera, camcorder to name a few, it’s worth taking insurance out on these as they can be easily misplaced or stolen.

Pet insurance: Pets are often like a member of the family and much loved, but costs really do add up if they are sick or injured. It’s worth taking out insurance because otherwise you could be faced with huge vet bills.

Travel insurance: Whether you are going away for a weekend in the UK, overseas for long periods of time or taking part in sporty or activity holidays it’s imperative that you have travel insurance to cover medical expenses and personal items. With airports misplacing thousands of people’s luggage each year, it’s definitely worth taking out a good insurance policy.

By finding a good mortgage broker to advise you, you will get the best policy for your circumstances.

Established for over 6 years, Alton Mortgages are a Mortgage Broker in Maidenhead covering all of Berkshire and beyond. If we can help provide you with Mortgage Advice Berkshire, please feel free to get in touch on enquiries@altonmortgages.co.uk or call us on 0845 095 34 35.

Commercial mortgages are designed for people who are buying or remortgaging a property for the purpose of being used as business premises.

If you are looking for a commercial mortgage, ideally you need to find a whole of market mortgage broker that is able source Commercial Mortgages via their connections with both High Street lenders and Specialist Banks, and ideally with institutions that are dedicated to and aim purely at the commercial sector. The broker will need to negotiate commercial mortgages with a wide range of lenders including major banks, commercial building societies, local or regional building societies as well as specialist commercial asset lenders.  The broker will choose a commercial lender that will best meet your business needs.

The commercial mortgage rates depend on the industry in which you operate, and also the performance of your business. They will also look at your own financial circumstances.    

Mortgage brokers often have access to the Key Relationship Managers within the banks, which means that they can utilize their strong relationships to gain access to exclusive rates; so that you can achieve the best commercial mortgage deals. A mortgage broker will then project manage your application for a Commercial Mortgage from start to finish, taking the stress away from you and allowing you to concentrate on other important business matters.

A mortgage broker will also help you to review your existing Commercial Mortgage, or you may wish to move to new business premises.

The importance of a mortgage broker in this area cannot be overlooked, as every commercial mortgage that is agreed is unique and brokers can negotiate to get the best mortgage and rates for their clients, each with their own set of circumstances and so are often tailored and can include interest only periods, long term repayment plans and fixed, variable and hedged mortgage rates.

Until recently, most brokers could arrange business funding up to 80% loan to property value depending on trading performance and industry sector.  However, in today’s economic climate it’s more realistic to assume a figure of 65% LTV.

Established for over 6 years, Alton Mortgages are a Mortgage Broker in Maidenhead covering all of Berkshire and beyond. If we can help provide you with Mortgage Advice Berkshire, please feel free to get in touch on enquiries@altonmortgages.co.uk or call us on 0845 095 34 35.