<h2>Derbyshire-based mortgage firm, Peak Mortgages &amp; Protection, is providing a free will writing service during September for NHS workers - its way of giving something back to the community.</h2>It has been an exceptional 12 months for <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://peakmortgagesandprotection.co.uk">Peak</a> as they have grown from strength to strength due to transaction levels in the property market, and are now offering a will writing and estate planning service to their clients. Peak Managing Director, Rhys Schofield, said:“It's been a crazy year for us at Peak. We moved office once and then had to expand again to accommodate the new jobs created but being from an NHS family myself we felt that it was right we reward people who have literally been putting their lives on the line to keep us all safe.” To qualify for the offer of free standard will writing, you simply need to get in touch with Peak Wills and Estate Planning to book an appointment by the end of September, be a current NHS employee and live in Derbyshire.&nbsp;<blockquote>It's been a crazy year for us at Peak. We moved office once and then had to expand again to accommodate the new jobs created but being from an NHS family myself we felt that it was right we reward people who have literally been putting their lives on the line to keep us all safe"</blockquote><figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/newspage.com-staging/company/314/files/155c770e0d50e05a3fa6ff46d5dde4c76c0b026500d633ddd7468d53e57e404d8bffa714ac14d7c0dda7453a183c6606fa946c8dd7a64e5fb4045a2227d4738f.jpeg"><figcaption>Peak MD, Rhys Schofield, with office dog!</figcaption></figure>

Rhys Schofield

Belper-based broker provides free will writing for NHS workers

Proudly Derbyshire based but assisting clients nationally, Peak specialise in mortgages, life insurance. Peak started up in 2019 and have gradually built up our offering to try and bring our award winning, relaxed, 5 star reviewed approach to more overly stuffy professional services. We even got so annoyed with how bad conveyancing was that we set up our own conveyancing panel. It seems to be translating into success. We have been finalists for 19 national awards, won 5 awards now for being the best in Derbyshire and have over 600 5-star Google reviews across the businesses and offices.

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Advisor team Photo

British Mortgage Award Finalist Rhys rowing.jpg

British Mortgage Award Finalist Rhys rowing

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Peak Mortgages and Protection

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<img src="https://s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/newspage.com-staging/company/314/files/d3a58cb3024b1f48e9722827f1cebf7f66b1fad5ca43b9cf1e8755e2f919e5980fd1606edc5d0c5ba5bd680c4f4e0205631ff608b269499e9999e4df67c135f7.jpeg">Fix My Legals co-founders Rhys Schofield (right) and Joe Miller (left)&nbsp;Derbyshire brokers Peak Mortgages and Protection fronted by 'Metallica of Mortgages' Rhys Schofield and property services business Enable Services Group led by Joe Miller are delighted to officially announce their partnership in launching Fix My Legals. Their raison d'etre? To take the FML out of conveyancing, something which is a hideous, slow process for many brokers, estate agents and customers alike. Initially Rhys and his other co-founders were simply so frustrated with the status quo that they wanted to try to set up their own portal but then when he met his co-founder Joe it was clear that there was a real meeting of minds and goals. After building an all-star team behind the scenes and assembling a superb panel of conveyancers who also shared the goal of quicker transactions, fairly paid and with clear updates Fix My Legals launched softly in August. And they're beginning to flex their muscles and show that there is a better way to do things. Rhys explains, 'at a time when average turnarounds for purchases to exchange has been a round 150 days, FML's average is just 56 working days. So why would anyone risk their reputation by referring their conveyancing work to firms that you need to chase and the service is iffy at best? And what better way if you're an estate agent or broker to ensure you get paid 2 months quicker on your pipeline?' As Enable own Home Surveying Services Ltd, right from the off, introducers have been able to utilise Fix My Legals to instruct survey enquiries too for clients taking care of a clear client need and creating another revenue stream. What's next for Fix My Legals? Well Rhys tells us that, 'well now that we have the structure and capacity honed it's time for us to grow. We have a field-based business development manager joining the team in March and we're also looking to grow our network of non-English speaking conveyancers further because clients should be able to communicate on a complicated matter in a language that they are comfortable with.'<blockquote>We're taking the FML out of conveyancing. When house purchases are taking roughly 150 days to exchange we're averaging just 56 working days. How's that for shaking things up and why would a broker estate agent still refer conveyancing enquiries to someone who is a bit rubbish?</blockquote>

Peak and Enable Join Forces to Take the FML out of Conveyancing

Since the various lockdowns, the mortgage company took to zoom to conduct their appointments and had to get used to this ‘new way’ of advising, since clients weren’t able to come into the office due to obvious reasons. However, now restrictions have lifted, the company have welcomed clients back into their Milford base, but also kept the option of zoom available too since it proved to be easier for some clients, especially for those with children.&nbsp; Clients are welcome to a free beer from the office beer fridge, a usual tea or coffee (or squash) and they are even welcome to have a play with an office dog – they do have 12, so there’s a good chance one will be in. Since the launch in 2019, Peak has gone from a team of two to a team of 15 and has been a finalist (and even won two) for a range of nationally recognised awards.&nbsp; August is looking like another busy month for the team, with a steady split of face to face and zoom appointments keeping the advisors busy.<blockquote>We introduced zoom appointments during the first lockdown since we weren't able to see clients in person and it was a real hit. It actually proved to be easier for some as they didn't have to sort out childcare. Whatever is best for the client, is best for us.</blockquote>

Peak Mortgages and Protection in Belper and well underway to make August another show stopping month. 

<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/newspage.com-staging/company/314/images/8fcaa0d6d55a7ce54113497e80fcff4e263ac702e7143f9abd6d5fc9aee7c4801d0bbf0ff63982d8452b54d18b16c1d39ebc7d63b575c5ce4e3963eb2a75a104.jpeg"><figcaption>The Peak Team of Advisors</figcaption></figure>An all too common perception is that mortgage brokers just find cheap interest rates. Local Derbyshire Firm, Peak Mortgages and Protection, are keen to challenge that assumption. Especially in the most volatile housing market seen in decades. Managing Director, Rhys Schofield, explains, “parts of the conveyancing industry are in utter disarray having been brought to their knees by the double whammy of the stamp duty holiday and failing to adapt their working processes in a post-COVID world. Then on top of that, some estate agents have a tendency to go AWOL the moment there is a common problem like a low valuation figure.” He went on to say, “It seems that mortgage brokers are propping up the inadequacies of big parts of the housing market. Estate Agent Today said 36% of transactions fell through last year (some months as high as 50% was reported). With Peak, it was only 8% and we had to face down and adapt to the same pandemic problems as everyone else. We were all zooming from our living rooms.” “The difference is that the key measure of success as far as we are concerned is earning a 5 Star Review, so we employ a team highly skilled mortgage admins to solve problems and help ensure peoples house moves actually happen. Without a doubt, if we didn’t do this, more clients would end up facing the heartache and hefty financial cost for transactions that were just left to fall apart.” Earlier this year, the Homeowners Alliance reported the average cost to consumers of a failed house transaction was £2,700 so the cost when things go wrong is certainly significant. Rhys reports that ‘client feedback has been excellent and with over 300 5 Star Google Reviews, which is the most in the county, we certainly look to be on the right track. The fact that we also don’t charge a fee for our service on a residential mortgage makes it a no brainer to come to a firm like Peak if you want to talk about anything mortgages – it costs nothing, you’ll be getting the best deal for your circumstances and you’re far less likely for all your best laid plans to fall apart!’ Rhys finishes by saying ‘it would however be nice if some parts of the industry picked up the slack so that our job was slightly less stressful.’ Peak Mortgages and Protection are based just off of the A6 in Milford and have recently recruited their 15th human member of staff (there are a number of office dogs). They even provide their customers complimentary beer and wine in their appointments and recently won Derbyshire Mortgage Advisors of the Year at the UK Enterprise Awards. &nbsp;<blockquote>We ran a bit of market research online around why people may or may not choose to use a mortgage broker and there was a sizeable minority of people who seemed to think it's pretty easy and just a case of 'Googling the best rates' which actually couldn't be further from the truth. Yes it's a given that a mortgage broker will get the best rates possible but the nitty gritty back office stuff goes unappreciated. We couldn't believe that we were managing to get such a high proportion of transactions through compared to the national average and thought 'why aren't more people talking about this sort of thing?'</blockquote>

A Mortgage Brokers Job Is More Than Just Finding Cheap Rates

Intro As mortgage brokers, our collective mind boggles when we see customers pouring money down the drain each month sat on a lenders standard variable rate, yet a study by Experian (1) in September 2020 showed that 46% of homeowners were on their lenders standard variable rate. Consumer group Which (2) released and article in January 2021 saying that ‘Homeowners could be paying more than £4,000 too much in mortgage repayments every year, after lapsing on to their lender’s standard variable rate (SVR).’ Heck, even at Peak, we have some clients who’s arms we have to twist to let us look at their other mortgages properly. We genuinely had a customer this morning who was happy to drop onto his standard variable rate until we pointed our that this would add £879.58 A MONTH to his repayments compared to doing nothing. When real numbers were put in front of him, he bit our hand off! It’s fairly unlikely that the average UK homeowner has £4000 a year to waste (imagine the look on your partners face if you came in and said you’d lost that sort of sum in a casino!) so why do so nearly half of UK mortgage holders continue to sit on their SVR when clearly, it is often a very financially silly thing to do? Some advantages of an SVR Ok in some rare cases sitting on SVR can have perceived advantages so let’s address them. Being on a standard variable rate normally means you can overpay as much extra off of your mortgage as you like without being hit with any early repayment charges. That’s a very valid point however, there are many often lower rates out there offered by lenders that clients may be eligible for, meaning they can still overpay but not get stitched up financially by their existing lender charging an over the odds interest rate whilst they do it. Some customers may also have had a change in their circumstances meaning that they aren’t in the position to apply for a new mortgage with a new lender. Often this can be worked around. A good broker can also explore the possibility of a ‘rate switch’ or ‘product transfer’ with a clients existing lender meaning they don’t need to go through the normal process of verifying income, credit scoring etc but aren’t potentially getting ripped off every month. Where you might legitimately sit on a standard variable rate for a short period is if you currently have a house sale/purchase going through and would rather take the hit of higher interest for a month or 2 so as to have no tie ins and free choice of lender for your onward purchase without the hassle of applying for 2 mortgages. Really that’s about the only common legitimate reason and those clients if they are savvy are already speaking to a mortgage broker who is looking after their needs and would be advising on the suitability of that course of action. Why are consumers letting it happen to them? My experience as a broker is that we have a bit of a perfect storm where laziness and lack of financial literacy means a large proportion of people legitimately struggle to get their heads round what a huge difference a simple course of action could mean to their household finances. Just imagine the hoops many of us would jump through to get a £4K (after tax) payrise if we use the average annual saving according to Which. Obviously something is stopping consumers so I’ll address some of the common hurdles, real or imagined that seem to crop up. Consumers think it costs money to remortgage. There are generally plenty of fee free options out there for remortgages and most of the commonly used lenders either provide a free solicitor to do the very basic legal work needed or provide cashback for you to put towards paying for your own.&nbsp; Sometimes paying a fee can be worthwhile (I just paid a £995 fee to my lender get a better rate on my remortgage as it saved me around £1400 in interest over the next 2 years) but a mortgage broker will always factor in your personal preference as well as work out what actually leaves a client better off financially. Also here at Peak, we do not charge a broker fee for any remortgage business that we submit so our mortgage advice and guidance will cost a customer nothing – not bad for a company with over 300 5 star Google Reviews (3) - the most in Derbyshire. Complimentary beer in our office also means that even if you just pop into the office and don’t proceed with anything, you’ve had a free drink on us! People think it’s inconvenient. Well it shouldn’t be. A good broker will see you at a time that’s convenient for you and take care of all the hard work, guiding you through. Yes you’ll have to spend 5 minutes maybe getting a few bank statements and payslips together as well as signing a few documents. It’s perhaps a 2 hour outlay of time every couple of years to not be paying an average of £4000 a year extra in interest? I can’t think of many legal ways to earn that much in a few hours so therefore it should be towards the top of our list of financial priorities as consumers. Many people think that remortgaging means adding more debt to your property. Often quite the opposite is true! Remortgaging involves switching your current one to as good a deal as possible meaning you ideally pay less interest in the long run and could actually afford to pay off your debt quicker. Very often when we are bringing a clients rate down we encourage them to reduce their mortgage term whilst keeping the payment the same – this can mean they have to pay the lender a lot less interest in the long run as well as reaching the promised land of being debt free sooner. And every brokers favourite – “My bank probably offers me the best deal.” In short, probably not. There are thousands upon thousands of mortgage deals out there at any one time. The odds that your bank offers ‘the best’ are frankly pretty long and even if they do, more often than not your mortgage broker will likely have access to that rate anyway, as well as offering a bit more of a personable and user friendly process. A good broker will do all the heavy lifting even after the mortgage offer is issued, like liaising with solicitors and checking the paperwork is all in order. Direct to your bank you’ll get your offer but then often they leave you to muddle through on your own. In Summary Really we can see there are very few situations (bar selling your house and redeeming a mortgage imminently) where sitting on a standard variable rate is likely to be anything less than financially a little bit silly. The potential savings are too large to ignore and the smokescreen reasons to put it off are often not valid. It comes down then to financial literacy, nor appreciating the potential savings or else laziness and real life events meaning it keeps dropping to the bottom of our to-do lists. Go on Google, search for mortgage brokers in your town, and get in touch with whoever has the best reviews. They will help take it from there. Or just call us here at Peak – it’s for good reason that we have over 300 5 star Google Reviews and whilst our preference is to conduct business face to face over a beer, we can video call anyone, anywhere in the UK. Don’t forget, we do not charge a broker fee or advice fee on a residential remortgage so it will cost you nothing to speak to us and you could end up significantly better off. So, if you are on a standard variable rate without good reason, your next call, text or email needs to be to a mortgage broker. Your next should be to anyone you know in the same boat. Sources: (1) https://www.experianplc.com/media/news/2020/millions-of-homeowners-still-missing-out- on-mortgage-savings-of-up-to-5-000/ (2) https://www.which.co.uk/news/2021/01/six-remortgaging-myths-that-could-cost-you- thousands/ - Which? (3) As of 03/08/21 292 reviews on https://www.google.com/search?q=peak+mortgages+and+protection&amp;rlz=1C1CHBF_en- GBGB852GB852&amp;oq=peak+mortgages+and+protection&amp;aqs=chrome..69i57j46i39i175i199j0 i22i30j69i61j69i60l2j69i65l2.5594j0j4&amp;sourceid=chrome&amp;ie=UTF-8 and 43 on https://www.google.com/search?q=peak+mortgages+and+protection+swadlincote&amp;rlz=1C1 CHBF_en-GBGB852GB852&amp;sxsrf=ALeKk02zU2TA9Cv- peRzxKqTzyOmBo0EOA%3A1627995552035&amp;ei=oD0JYcHEAczSkwWKmJbwCQ&amp;oq=peak+m ortgages+and+protection+swadlincote&amp;gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAM6BwgAEEcQsAM6CAghEB YQHRAeSgQIQRgAUIUkWLYrYLMuaAFwAngAgAFZiAGgBJIBATeYAQCgAQHIAQTAAQE&amp;sclient =gws-wiz&amp;ved=0ahUKEwjBlMyE9JTyAhVM6aQKHQqMBZ4Q4dUDCA4&amp;uact=5 (4) (4) &nbsp;<blockquote>So, if you are on a standard variable rate without good reason, your next call, text or email needs to be to a mortgage broker. Your next should be to anyone you know in the same boat.</blockquote>

Laziness and lack of financial literacy? Why are so many people sat on their mortgage lenders standard variable rate?

<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/newspage.com-staging/company/314/images/cc53b218783e47afb4f7bb645fb975a33753dec64274a3c73861e70f3f5f68b299897b32362318543d9e00e566372a7772b49745774df7f5448b9402d6f9f4cc.jpeg"><figcaption>Sadie Brown joins Peak!</figcaption></figure>Peak Mortgages and Protection in Belper has hired a new Mortgage Admin, Sadie Brown, bringing the total to 15 staff members, not long after taking on its third office space in the Riverside Business Centre in Milford.&nbsp; The local company has gone from strength to strength recently, winning two awards at the UK Enterprise awards and hiring four more people since February. Rhys Schofield, Managing Director of Peak Mortgages and Protection, says:<blockquote>It’s great to see that, in uncertain times, our mantra of being the best at what we do locally is paying off and I’m delighted to be creating more local jobs for local people.</blockquote>Helping the local community is important to the Milford-based mortgage broker as they donate money each month to Lauren’s Legacy, an Amber Valley charity, and help sponsor sports clubs including Belper Rugby Club.&nbsp; The company is currently on 292 5-star Google reviews, which is the most in Derbyshire at what they do, and they are helping Belper Rugby Club hold an outdoor cinema event on the weekend commencing the 19th August, with Peak clients going free.&nbsp;

Belper mortgage broker creates another local job

Peak Mortgages and Protection in Belper, Derbyshire have made the finals for Best Individual Protection Adviser at the UK Health &amp; Protection Awards 2021. This comes after making 7 finals previously, including The British Mortgage Awards where the founder and director, Rhys Schofield, made the top 3 in the country for (best) Broker: Protection.&nbsp; So far, the company, who was founded in 2019, has won two awards at the 2021 UK Enterprise Awards for Mortgage Advisors of the Year 2021 - Derbyshire and the Distinction Award for Client Service Excellence 2021.&nbsp; The UK Health &amp; Protection Awards 2021 will take place on Thursday 14th October in London and recognises those businesses who deliver "impeccable service, innovative thinking and outstanding client care during one of the most challenging years in memory". &nbsp; &nbsp;<blockquote>Rhys Schofield: "We are so happy to be finalists for another award! To get all these nominations, it really shows that we are doing something great!"</blockquote>

Belper Mortgage Brokers become 8th time National Award Finalists

Peak Mortgages and Protection in Belper have recently hired another experienced advisor, bringing the total number of employees to 13. Within a year, the team has grown from just 3 employees, including the Managing Director and the Office manager, to a group of over ten, in spite of the Coronavirus pandemic. Despite the challenging year due to the virus, the company has managed to stay open throughout the various lockdowns and become as the top rated company at what they do in Derbyshire when it comes to 5 star Google Reviews.&nbsp;Vicky Tamber, the newest advisor, says: “I'm so excited for this new challenge. Others might think that leaving a big corporate to join a smaller team is a risk, but I know already that this ‘risk’ has paid off. Peak is doing incredible and I'm so happy to be here”. Peak Mortgages and Protection continues to grow, and strives to not let the pandemic affect the company so they can continue to provide the 5 star service they are known for. &nbsp;<figure class="image"><img src="https://s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/newspage.com-staging/company/314/images/cf58450d3d25ef26ed12f18547726203535371129590471c1f8a484bdeedb0b96315f834b766b2df7f29fc256dcfa3d1754066771c197168202c50e4390f80b9.jpeg"><figcaption>Half of the team on a recent pub lunch</figcaption></figure> &nbsp; &nbsp;<blockquote>Even through a pandemic, it's great to see that our values of trying to be the best at what we do and having the reviews to prove it are paying off and allowing us to keep expanding and creating local jobs. - Rhys Schofield</blockquote>&nbsp;

Belper Mortgage company goes from 3 staff members to 13 during Covid

Belper, 13 April 2021 - A Derbyshire-based independent mortgage broker has won two awards at the 2021 UK Enterprise Awards.<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://peakmortgagesandprotection.co.uk">Peak Mortgages &amp; Protection</a> in Belper has won the Mortgage Advisors of the Year 2021 (Derbyshire) and the Distinction Award for Client Service Excellence 2021, at this year's UK Enterprise Awards.The company, which was set up in 2019, has more than 250 5-star Google reviews. which is the most in the county at what it does, so it's building up quite a reputation.Peak has also recently launched a wills and estate planning business to introduce its fresh approach to another stuffy industry.It also recently &nbsp;made headlines for being the first mortgage company in the country with its very own heavy metal theme tune.&nbsp;Rhys Schofield, Founder, Peak Mortgages &amp; Protection, commented:<blockquote>“We are super excited to have won these two awards: all our hard work is being recognised! It's a big achievement, especially during the year of the coronavirus pandemic, and I would personally like to thank all our staff for their hard work.”</blockquote>

Belper broker wins brace of awards

Rhys Schofield, from Peak Mortgages and Protection in Belper, was featured in The Times last Saturday as part of VouchedFor's 2020 Guide To The UK’s Top Rated Financial Advisers. Schofield was one of the lucky advisors which were featured in last weekends issue, after qualifying with all 5 star reviews in the last three quarters, all written by his clients, past or present.&nbsp; Peak Mortgages and Protection are currently the top rated company at what they do in Derbyshire when it comes to Google reviews, with over 245 5 star reviews to date. The Belper based company are extremely happy with the founder and director, Rhys, getting featured in the well known newspaper which will reach around 1 million people, through online and print. VouchedFor is used by 2 million people each year as a platform to check and find advisors, and it is the UK's top ratings service for financial advisers. Schofield set up Peak Mortgages and Protection in 2019 and has over 13 years in the financial industry.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;<blockquote>For a small company who are forever expanding, something like this, especially to be featured in The Times, is incredibly important to us.</blockquote>

Belper mortgage advisor gets a top spot in The Times' Guide to The UK Top Rated Financial Advisor

A Derbyshire Mortgage and Protection company celebrate making the finals for two awards at The Mortgage Awards 2021. Peak Mortgages and Protection, based in Milford, Belper, is the current top firm at what they do in Derbyshire when it comes to 5 star Google reviews and the recognition keeps on growing. The firm were previously finalists for four national awards in 2020, with the founder and director, Rhys Schofield, making the top 3 for Protection (Broker) at the British Mortgage Awards, resulting in the company becoming nationally recognised even in its second year of trading. Peak Mortgages and Protection are since finalists for: Small Broker of the Year (Northern Regions) and Overall Broker of the Year (Northern Regions) at The Mortgage Awards 2021 with the awards night taking place on the 8th July in London. It is the 4th Annual Mortgage Awards and they are held to celebrate excellence within the UK Mortgage Industry, organised by MoneyAge. Peak Mortgages and Protection was founded in 2019 and specialise in Mortgages, Life Insurance, Critical Illness Cover, Income Protection and as of this week, Wills and Estate Planning. Hopefully the company will follow in the footsteps of 2020, and will be in the running for more awards this year. &nbsp; &nbsp;<blockquote>We are a small business who has managed to get through the global pandemic along with hiring up to 10 new staff over the last year, and we are impressed with how far we have come since we started in 2019.</blockquote>

Awards Galore - Small Belper mortgage company make finals for another two national awards in second year of trading

Top company in Derbyshire at what they do when it comes to Google reviews, Peak Mortgages and Protection, are expanding into the world of wills and estate planning, after their first successful year of advising. Along with the mortgages, insurance and protection, which the company is known for, the business has dived into this new venture as well as setting up a 'communities' side to the Peak brand, only a few months previous. Peak Mortgages and Protection have been finalists for six national awards in the country over the past year, with the Founder and Director, Rhys, making the top three for Best Broker at the 2020 British Mortgage Awards. In just over a year, despite the pandemic, the team has expanded from two people (and one office dog) to 13 (and more office dogs) and have taken over another office at their Milford base. As well as their expansion inside the business, they are also expanding outside of the four walls. There are plans in August to help hold a cinema night at Belper Rugby Club, and there are on - going talks with The University of Derby about real life working experiences for the students. The company are also passionate about helping their local community, and last year, donated over £8000 to local Amber Valley causes and clubs. The company has also recently got their own theme tune thanks to Blackwater Studios which makes them the only local mortgage and protection company to have one. The metal song has been used in a selection of videos for social media, and fits in with the theme of Peak wanting to stand out from their rivals. Peak are forever expanding and love to be the stand out company who are good at their jobs - just look at their Google reviews, awards nominations and check out their social media.
<blockquote>Local Belper business expanding during the pandemic</blockquote>