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The shopper has to move to Plymouth to start a new job. He currently rents a flat in London with friends and pays £520 per month. The shopper is interested in buying a property when he moves in order to get himself onto the housing ladder. However with the current market the shopper is not sure whether now is the right time to invest and get a mortgage or whether he should continue to rent for the time being. He has seen a house in Plymouth for £110,000, has saved about £8000 for a deposit and earns £20,000 a year. The shopper wants to know what options are available to him.

Sound Financial Management LTD

Plymouth, PL4 ORF

www.sfm-ifa.co.uk

Speed of response: Time of call: 10.31am. The call was answered after three rings by a friendly receptionist who put the shopper on hold for a short while before transferring him to an adviser.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Telephone manner: The adviser was very helpful and seemed to be relaxed, articulate and eloquent.

Rating 5/5 stars

Qualifications: Without being asked the adviser told the shopper he had the CeMAP qualification and was FPC qualified. He also said he was fully independent.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Payment method: Without being prompted the adviser said the initial conversation would be free. He said there was a possibility of a fee but this depended on the case as usually took a fee from the lender.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Guidance: He explained it was not his place to tell the shopper whether he should buy a property at the moment but to establish his personal and financial situation and advise what options were available. He explained what types of mortgage were out there and said initially he would have to ascertain certain information such as the shopper's salary and various commitments such as other loans he may have. The adviser then went on to thoroughly explain the differences between mortgages. The adviser also warned about valuation and application fees. He said he would work hard to get the right deal for the shopper.

Rating: 5/5 stars

Knowledge: The adviser's obvious knowledge made the shopper feel relaxed talking to him.

Rating: 5/5 stars

Verdict: The adviser knew exactly what he was doing and did it very well. He offered the shopper all the necessary information regarding fees and qualifications and gave him very sensible and thorough advice. He was very friendly and personable, which made the shopper feel at ease.

Rating: 26/30 stars

Molyneux Associates Limited

Plymouth, PL3 4BB

www.molyneux-associates.co.uk

Speed of response: Time of call: 10.57am. The call was picked up after two rings by a slightly irritated, receptionist who asked the shopper questions and then put him through to an adviser.

Rating: 1/5 stars

Telephone manner: The adviser was friendly and also energetic. He spoke very quickly and it was quite exhausting listening to him.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Qualifications: The adviser mentioned he was independent and covered the whole of market, however he did not mention any specific qualifications.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Payment method: The adviser told the shopper they usually charged a fee but this would not be payable until the end of the deal. He emphasised until the deal was complete the shopper was not committed to paying anything.

Rating: 1/5 stars

Guidance: The adviser asked the shopper whether he had adverse credit, what his salary was and did he have any loans or county court judgements made against him. He seemed optimistic and told the shopper he would go away and do some research based on the information the shopper had given him and then call him back later with some more advice.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Knowledge: The adviser clearly had sufficient knowledge of mortgages, however the shopper was unable to find out to what extent as the conversation flew by and the adviser was going to get back to him.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Verdict: The adviser was friendly, easy to talk to, lively and helpful. He seemed very eager to help the shopper and was kind. However, he was a bit too excited and although the adviser was going to call back with some further information, the shopper learnt very little initially over the telephone.

Rating: 12 stars

GML Financial Services (Plymouth) Limited

Plymouth, PL6 5AD

No web presence

Speed of response: Time of call: 11.06am. The call was answered quickly after just one ring by an adviser.

Rating: 5/5 stars

Telephone manner: At first the adviser seemed a little short and disinterested but as the conversation progressed he loosened up a bit.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Qualifications: Even though the shopper had to prompt the adviser, all he managed to establish was the adviser was independent and covered the whole of market.

Rating: 1/5 stars

Payment method: When asked the adviser said where payment was concerned, depending on how much work was involved, GML was mostly remunerated by procuration fee.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Guidance: The most important thing was for the shopper to establish his financial situation and explain all the different options. The adviser told the shopper if he had a deposit of 10 per cent to15 per cent then the "world is his oyster". He asked about the shopper's salary, whether he had any outgoings and if he had any money for a deposit. The adviser said it would probably be a good time for the shopper to buy if he could afford it. He explained the differences between fixed rates, tracker rates and variable rates.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Knowledge: The adviser seemed to know a lot about the industry although he did not seem willing to share his knowledge with the shopper on the telephone.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Verdict: The adviser was friendly and knew his stuff, however he did not seem that interested and was pretty eager for the shopper to arrange a face to face meeting.

Rating: 16/30 stars