Applying for a mortgage can be daunting as most people know, but because I’ve left it relatively late in life at 54, and because I have had completely contradictory ‘advice’ from work colleagues, friends and relatives, I assumed that applying for a mortgage as a ‘first time buyer’ was going to be even more of a minefield than it would normally be. I shouldn’t have worried. From my initial, tentative phone enquiry right up to and including the mortgage provider’s official ‘green lighting’ of my application, every step of the way has been stress-free thanks to the hard work, dedication and professionalism of both (Rebecca) Becky Taylor and Sarah Morgan, who work for the Mortgage Advice Bureau and are based at Ryder & Dutton’s Middleton Branch. All of the steps and processes that are involved in applying for a mortgage, including potential pit-falls what is considered ‘good practice’, have been explained to me with minimal (and off-putting!) industry speak, in a logical and cliché-free manner; and where appropriate clear and concise flow diagrams were used. In fact, the whole process of buying a house/ flat was boiled down to a sheet of A4 paper! Each aspect of the process was then dealt with separately and ‘fleshed -out’ as-and-when needed, so it was easy to discern how one process directly affects the other. After each meeting I knew exactly what steps to take next, who would be contacting me and exactly what they would require – wage slips, ID, bank statements etc. Even when there was a protracted wait due to the lender having a backlog, I was advised by both email and ‘phone call (at least once a week) exactly where my mortgage application was up to. It’s comforting to have someone tell you that the delay is on the bank’s part as opposed to one worrying unnecessarily that it was because it was down to something that one had neglected to do! At all times both Becky and Sarah have been professional without being overly formal, personable and they both clearly like to help people – this is actually quite a difficult ‘balancing act’ to get right. I am someone who works in a customer-facing role and is involved in driving and maintaining time-critical processes, so I like to think I know what I’m talking about. Excellent customer service! If it were possible to give an eleven out of ten here as opposed to five stars then I would have no hesitation in doing so!