About the Mortgage and Finance Industry
The mortgage and finance industry is a great one to work in, with jobs offering great development opportunities and rates of pay. Despite challenges in recent years – Brexit, the pandemic and inflation to name just a few – careers in this industry are a great choice in the current climate. With rising demand for housing, first-home purchases, and mortgages as a result, prospects are looking great for this sector. Keep reading to find out more about jobs in the mortgage and finance industry, and what to expect!
Roles we often recruit for on behalf of clients:
Here are some examples of jobs we often recruit for on behalf of our clients – keep reading to find out about qualifications, work experience and career prospects…
Mortgage and Protection Advisor
Job Description
As a mortgage adviser, you’ll advise clients on the pros and cons of each product and help them determine how much they should borrow. You might be ‘whole of market’, tied to a single lender, or have a limited list of lenders.
Qualifications
To become a mortgage adviser, you must successfully complete the Certificate in Mortgage Advice and Practice (CeMAP) course. This is an FCA approved course that meets industry standards. Furthermore, the CeMAP can be studied independently, or arranged through your employer. Additionally, most course providers offer flexible studying arrangements and distance/online learning. Typically, it can be completed anywhere between six months and a year.
The Chartered Insurance Insititute (CII) also offers the equivalent Certificate in Mortgage Advice qualification – also FCA approved. Follow the link to find out more about this qualification:
https://www.cii.co.uk/learning/qualifications/
A degree is not essential for a career as a mortgage adviser, but the following may be useful:
- accountancy and finance
- business and management skills
- real estate
Work Experience
It’s important to gain relevant work experience – this might be in a finance, customer service or sales environment. This will increase your understanding of the financial sector and improve the competitiveness of your job application.
Career Prospects
- Take further qualifications to become an independent financial adviser (IFA)
- Consider setting up your own mortgage broker firm
- Become a financial controller, or a wealth manager
- You may choose to become a self-employed, independent mortgage adviser, managing your own clients
- With experience, in an employed role, you could progress to managing a team of mortgage advisors in a senior/management-level role.
Average Salary
- Trainee – £20-£25k
- Experienced – £30-£35k + commission
- (OTE range £60-£80k)
Mortgage Administrator
Job Description
Behind every good mortgage advisor, you’ll find an administration team. These individuals work diligently to get your application through. Moreover, a mortgage administrator’s job is varied and holds a lot of responsibility; without them, mortgage applications could be delayed. Primarily, an administrator’s main duty is to carry out the majority of mortgage-related applications.
Qualifications
Mortgage Administrators don’t necessarily need to have the CeMap qualification, but you will need:
- Excellent communication and customer service skills.
- Excellent computer skills including database set-up and maintenance, Microsoft office including excel and word
Work Experience
As a mortgage administrator typically attracts entry-level candidates, experience can take different forms. Proven past experience of administration within the mortgage or financial industry will be especially useful. As long as you can prove you have the necessary experience and skill set, your application should be considered.
Career Prospects
- Starting out as a mortgage administrator, there are lots of opportunities for career growth in this industry. Many employers are happy to train staff to become mortgage advisors or propel them into higher-ranking positions.
Average Salary
- £25k
Mortgage Underwriter
Job Description
Think of these guys as financial detectives – they evaluate and pass loan applications, analyse financial risks and make decisions based on applicant’s eligibility. Typically, they work with mortgage lenders or banks, within a team of financial experts, to determine whether to accept or decline a mortgage application. An underwriter will begin by first reading an application, then calculating the financial risk, before matching it against the applicant’s profile. During this process, underwriters must raise any red flags before making the final decision.
Qualifications
Technically, you don’t need a degree, although it can be useful to have one in a relevant subject, such as finance, economics or business.
Work Experience
Aside from education, on-the-job experience is extremely beneficial. This might come through an internship or entry-level job, and some employers might ask for several years of relevant experience (which will massively boost your CV). Employers will expect you to both computer literate and confident when working with spreadsheet data.
Career Prospects
- Many underwriters complete The Advanced Diploma in Insurance, offered by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), in order to boost their career into management positions. This position offers many opportunities for progression, with the natural path leading to more senior positions.
Average Salary
- Average £40-£45k
- Commission is available to most financial advisors
Business Development Manager
Job Description
Business Development Managers (BDM’s), are crucial to banks and lenders in facilitating opportunities for growth. Their job is to build towards business goals by nurturing and developing relationships. Working as part of a team, BDM’s lead the way in driving growth, while promoting the bank/building society’s brand and services. They’re responsible for driving and retaining business growth opportunities whilst promoting the brand, service and product offerings of the Society.
Qualifications
A degree is not essential for this role and some business development managers work their way up through an organisation, gaining experience in a sales or marketing role and undertaking work-based training. Another increasingly common route into business development management is through an apprenticeship, combining work with part-time study. Apprenticeships are available at various levels, including degree-level.
As it’s a competitive role with good prospects, many entrants do have a degree, and a degree is essential if you wish to apply for a place on a graduate training scheme. Degrees in business development or business management are typically the most relevant, but other relevant subjects include:
- accountancy
- business studies
- economics
- finance
- international relations
- marketing
Work Experience
Experience is super important and will instantly make your application more competitive. Any past experience in sales, marketing or business administration will benefit your CV and core skills.
Career Prospects
- You could choose to specialise in a particular sector, such as IT or healthcare, or in a particular field, such as sales or marketing.
- You may progress to the role of a senior business development manager, perhaps being responsible for a bigger team or department, with higher targets. Furthermore, with enough experience, you could reach director level.
- If you work for an international company, working overseas is possible. You may have the option of traveling and working for short periods in the overseas divisions of your company, or you could apply for a permanent overseas transfer or to a new company.
- Additionally, there are opportunities to move into consultancy work, offering advice to a range of companies.
- Alternatively, you may consider setting up your own business development consultancy.
Average Salary
- £40-£50k
Financial Planner
Job Description
Financial Advisors provide clients with specialist advice on how to manage their… finances. Yeah you guessed it! This role involves researching the market, and advising on the most suitable products and services available to clients. Advisors may specialise in certain products, depending on the type of clients they serve; we typically recruit for roles in mortgage, protection and investment.
Qualifications
Entry into this position is possible without a degree, as employers often heavily consider an applicant’s personal qualities. However, in order to give financial advice, advisers must have specific Level 4 qualifications and also follow strict industry rules laid out by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Work Experience
- Relevant experience in customer service, sales or the finance industry will be beneficial to any applicant.
- Fresh starters typically begin their careers in a bank, or working part-time alongside studying.
- Some banks offer graduate training programmes, and some private banks recruit graduates directly.
Career Prospects
- Work on behalf of clients with larger investment sums.
- Specialise in one type of financial advice – for example, pensions and retirement planning, or savings investments plans.
- Work upwards within your company, and gradually become responsible for other advisors, for the recruitment and training of new staff or for marketing and promoting the company.
Average Salary
- £50k + commission
- OTE £90K
- Commission is available to most financial advisors
In short, YES! Since COVID-19, this sector has been in a state of upheaval, and as a result, many people were wary of pursuing careers in the mortgage and finance industry. However, in comparison to recent years, employment prospects are looking much brighter.
Are jobs in the mortgage and finance industry rewarding?
Feeling unsure about whether this industry is for you? Or have you got cold feet about that mortgage advisor role you’ve been offered? Well, becoming a mortgage advisor is a lucrative career with an attractive salary, and many areas for professional development. Furthermore, do you enjoy working with numbers and people? Great! The roles we’ve mentioned in this blog should suit you well. Moreover, careers in this industry are exciting and rewarding; you’re helping people make critical financial decisions and helping them progress in their lives!
It’s only going to improve!
The UK is a nation of homeowners, with the mortgage industry growing rapidly in recent years. Home-ownership is an integral part of life these days, with the majority of people aspiring to buy at some point. In this way, the market is only getting stronger – fab news for anyone in this sector. With earnings often dependent on commission, there’s loads of scope to earn a pretty penny in this market!
Thanks for reading our latest blog on jobs in the mortgage and finance industry!
Are you on the hunt for a new job in this industry? Click the link below to view our latest jobs:
https://placingfaces.co.uk/jobs-mortgage-and-protection-roles/
To view a range of roles we’re currently hiring for, please visit the following link to our jobs page!
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