Roles in the mortgage process

It can be confusing working out who does what in the surreal world of mortgages and property.

There are of course many different people who can get involved, but here we look at the four main names or titles of person you will encounter.

Estate agent

The most familiar person in the process, this is who you will visit to find properties, and they will show you around and act as the conduit between you and the householder whilst you try to buy the property you are after. Whilst some householders who are selling do now try to cut out estate agents, this is still the most popular and easiest route so the majority of people who sell their home will go through an estate agent, meaning that there should be an excellent sized pool of houses for you to view through local estate agents.

Mortgage provider

The mortgage provider is typically, though not always, a bank or building society, that will give you the money that you need to buy your house in the form of a repayable loan with interest. There are many mortgages available so you will need to research and think carefully before choosing the best mortgage product for you.

Whilst most people look at the house first and then figure out how to finance it, some actually do meet lenders first to get a feel for the different mortgage products out there and find out how much they are going to be likely to be able to borrow so they can set their dream home budgets accordingly.

Solicitor

The solicitor deals with the legal side of things, but confusingly you will often also hear the word 'conveyancer' bandied around. This is often done by the solicitor and refers to the legal side of securing the property for you. They check all the various paperwork, including the deeds, and so on, getting a firm idea of precisely what you will get for the money you spend. They will oversee exchange of contracts and ultimately completion. There are of course fees for the services of the solicitor.

Surveyor

The surveyor is the person who checks the property value. This is required by the lender so they can ensure that the property is worth what you want to borrow as a minimum. Sometimes this is now a fairly quick and in a sense superficial process in that the property could be assessed simply by the value of similar nearby properties. Of course if you are buying a house you will personally want a thorough survey undertaken to check the actual house itself and that there are no nasty surprises that you need to be aware of before purchase.

Buying Property

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Roles in the mortgage process

Estate agent

Mortgage provider

Solicitor

Surveyor

House Prices