Why start a career in mortgage advice?

August 18, 2014 by Brendan

Features

More and more people are deciding to become qualified mortgage advisors, and last year alone, CeMAP course registration figures experienced a 600% leap.

So, why are so many Brits choosing to boost their knowledge of the property market, and provide others with the necessary guidance to secure the mortgages they need? There are a number of advantages to a career in this field; hopefully, those we’ve listed here will allow you to decide whether or not it’s the right path for you:

Above average earnings

In the UK today, the average salary for an adult working full-time is £26,500, but a mortgage advisor has the potential to earn up to £55,000, the equivalent of almost £1060 per week, once commission is factored in.

Meaningful work

Of course, there’s more to job satisfaction than earnings. In certain jobs, there’s no heart behind the tasks being carried out because the employees involved are aware that no one benefits from the work on a direct, personal level. This isn’t the case with mortgage advisors, who typically operate content in the knowledge that they’re providing an essential service to the public, helping people to understand an otherwise complex topic and get onto the property ladder.

As an added bonus, a mortgage advisor gets to work face-to-face with clients, supplementing the meaningful interactions they experience with their colleagues and potentially boosting satisfaction levels.

The possibility of going independent

After years building up experience within a bank, building society or mortgage broker firm, many experts in the field will make the decision to fly the nest and become independent, which is a move often accompanied with all the bonuses associated with being your own boss. This includes flexible holidays and hours, and the ability to work from home.

The potential for earnings is somewhat greater, although, as with anything, a huge amount of work would be required to build a new client pool and fine-tune all aspects of the business.

Approvals high

As anyone who has read a financial paper in the last year will know, mortgage approvals are up, especially for first-time buyers. Statistics from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) showed that total gross lending in June increased by 6% from May’s figures and by 20% from June 2013.

Of the £17.9bn paid out, £4.2bn went to first-time buyers, with increases of 7% and 19% against May 2014 and June 2013 respectively.

Although house price rises slowed slightly during the month, the fact that so much is being borrowing indicates a continuing demand. To further support this fact, the CML’s figures also showed that today’s new buyers appear to be more willing to part with a bigger portion of their earnings; the loan-to-income ratio crept up, between May and June, from 3.46 times an annual salary to 3.47.

Mortgage advisors, as a result, know that there is a wide demand for their services, as well as that there will always be exciting new jobs for them to consider.