There are many lenders on the high street offering a bewildering range of products but how can you be sure which is best to suit your individual requirements. A high street lender cannot give you true unbiased advice as they only have their own limited range of products they can sell. Whilst interest rates are close to their lowest level in decades, it is now more important than ever to shop around for the most suitable deal. For example, a saving of just 0.25% on a £120,000 interest only mortgage would save you £7,500 in interest over 25 years – money that would otherwise go to the lender. You must first choose whether to go into the high street and visit numerous lenders to find out what they offer and then attempt to compare which products best suit your needs, or you can visit a professional mortgage broker who has access to all of the lenders’ products and may well have some exclusive deals that you cannot buy from the lenders directly.

Clearly, by using the services of the professional third party firm, you will save yourself a great deal of legwork and your mortgage broker will be able to sell you competitive insurance protection and can help administer the whole paper process through to completion, including liaison with solicitors, valuers and the lender on your behalf.

Your mortgage adviser will help calculate how much money you will need to pay for every month of the mortgage and choose the term that offers you the most affordable option, according to your own specific circumstances. Mortgage terms tend to range from 15 through to 30 years in duration. The shorter the term, the higher your monthly payment will be, but the interest you will pay over the full period of your mortgage will be lower.

Mortgages come with either a fixed or variable interest rate. For peace of mind, you may prefer a fixed-rate mortgage, although if the interest rates fall you may find yourself paying more than other people. A variable-rate mortgage is linked to movements in the Bank of England's base rate so that monthly payments will fluctuate up and down accordingly.

Your qualified mortgage adviser should keep you informed as to the progress of your mortgage and answer any queries you may have.