It's about time advisers were appreciated

If my sink stops working I will seek out a plumber; if I am struggling with a piece of work I will speak to my boss; and if I am having personal issues then I am likely to turn to friends and family for help.

Basically, if I am in a rut then I turn to someone for help, and right now advisers and mortgage brokers are becoming that person for a lot of people who are struggling with their finances.

The mortgage market has gone mad over the past few weeks following chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s so-called “mini” Budget.

A vast amount of products were withdrawn, rates have risen significantly and the price of borrowing has climbed.

It is safe to say that advisers are having quite a rough time of it.

All of this has made potential buyers panic, with some cancelling their plans to move. 

Others that were already looking to buy or are out to get the best mortgage deal have turned for help and picked up the phone to their mortgage adviser.

And so tough times like those we as a nation are going through right now really show how valuable it can be to have an adviser.

Brokers have been inundated with queries from clients trying to secure themselves the best rates, with some even querying whether it is worth paying an early redemption penalty to get out of a deal now and secure a rate rather than waiting for their current rate to expire.

Clients are even asking about a 10-year fixed rate, which they have never done before, according to one adviser.

All of these queries have made brokers busier than ever.

Under pressure

One adviser on Twitter, who had been speaking to colleagues, said many brokers were struggling to cope in the current climate and even had to cancel conferences or holidays in order to handle clients.

Another said: “I love my job but it's not even 9am and I already feel like I've been hit by a truck.”

And it’s not just advisers who deal in mortgages that are feeling the pressure.

Appreciation for advice is lacking, and this is evident in the absence of young people wanting to join the profession.

Advisers who do not specialise in mortgages have found that more clients are turning to them for help, so much so that Investec and advice firm London Money are running a series of mortgage refresher workshops to help IFAs brush up on their skills.

It is safe to say that advisers are having quite a rough time of it, working longer hours, trying to fit more clients into their schedule each day and most importantly trying to do the best for their clients. This is proving their worth.

Advisers have historically been tarnished with a bad reputation after the poor behaviour of some of their peers. But it is times like these that show how they are needed and the value they can add.

I have heard stories about how advisers sit on the phone for hours on end trying to get through to lenders on their clients' behalf.

And I have seen first hand how some will even work until midnight to secure the best rate for their clients before the lender pulls rates the following day.

But appreciation for advice is lacking, and this is evident in the absence of young people wanting to join the profession.

It should not take the economy and mortgage market to become this unpredictable for people to see the worth in advisers.

A freedom of information request from the Financial Conduct Authority, submitted by FTAdviser, showed 8 per cent of the 31,144 individuals authorised to provide retail investment advice were under the age of 30.

And in the mortgage space, 12 per cent of the 35,889 individuals authorised to provide mortgage advice are under the age of 30.

If this continues and the industry cannot show the value in advice, then there will be issues in the future with not enough advisers to go around.

It should not take the economy and mortgage market to become this unpredictable for people to see the worth in advisers.

But here's hoping that people do not have short memories and will remember the amount of work advisers have put in at this current time, and the value that they have added, long into the future.

Amy Austin is news editor at FTAdviser