PCN Mortgage brokers
A referral network for mortgage brokers, with one firm in each postcode area
The Professional Connections Network (PCN) connects one mortgage broker in each UK postcode area with one accountant, estate agent, financial adviser and solicitor. Estate agents refer buyers who need a mortgage, and accountants refer self-employed clients. You refer clients who need conveyancing, advice or a sale.
Run by Independent Check Ltd, in business since 2012. Who we are
OpenTaken121 of 121 areas open for mortgage brokers
Tap an area to check it. The boxes enlarge London and Manchester.
121 of 121 postcode areas are open for mortgage brokers.
Which clients do mortgage brokers send and receive?
These are the referrals that most often pass between a mortgage broker and the other four professions. Which ones you see depends on your clients and on who holds your area.
You refer
- Accountants
Self-employed applicants who need up-to-date accounts or tax year overviews before a lender will decide.
- Estate agents
Remortgage clients who decide to move, and buyers who need to sell first.
- Financial advisers
Clients with pension, investment or retirement questions you don't advise on.
- Solicitors
Buyers and remortgage clients who need a conveyancer.
You receive
- Accountants
Self-employed clients and company directors applying for a mortgage.
- Estate agents
Buyers who need a mortgage in principle before their offer goes forward.
- Financial advisers
Clients moving home, remortgaging or helping a child with a deposit.
- Solicitors
Clients buying a home with money from an estate or a divorce settlement.
Why would a mortgage broker join PCN?
Most mortgage cases start with someone else: an agent with a buyer, an accountant with a self-employed client, an adviser with a client moving home. PCN puts one firm from each of those professions in your postcode area in touch with you.
Those referrals come to you because no other broker in PCN can hold your area. In the other direction, your clients get a conveyancer, an adviser and an agent you can name.
There are no targets. You refer a client when it's right for them.
Who you’d work with
- Accountants→
Refer pension, legal and mortgage questions. Receive estates, landlords and new companies.
- Estate agents→
Refer buyers, sellers and landlords. Receive probate sales and downsizers.
- Financial advisers→
Refer wills, tax returns and house moves. Receive inheritances, sale proceeds and business sales.
- Solicitors→
Refer estate property, accounts and beneficiaries. Receive conveyancing, wills and company work.
What a referral from a mortgage broker looks like
A referral starts as a short summary with no names or contact details. The other firm accepts or declines on that alone, so say what the client needs and by when.
To a solicitor
Remortgage with a transfer of equity, as one partner comes off the title after separating. The lender’s offer is expected within two weeks.
To an accountant
Contractor who became a company director last year. The lender wants a full set of accounts, and the first year end has just passed.
To a financial adviser
Buyers completing next month on a 25-year mortgage, with two young children. No life cover or income protection is in place yet.
Before you send, check the summary
- It says what the client needs and when they need it.
- It includes anything that saves the other firm a question, such as the type of income or the property involved.
- It leaves out names, emails, phone numbers, full postcodes and dates of birth. PCN holds the referral back until they’re removed.
- You’ve ticked to confirm the client agreed to be referred.
Examples only, written to show the format. They are not real clients.
Where do mortgage brokers fit in a client’s referrals?
Four everyday client situations. Your profession is marked, and each arc is one referral between two firms in the same postcode area.
- 1Estate agent → mortgage broker
The buyer needs a mortgage agreed before the sale can go ahead.
- 2Estate agent → solicitor
Buyer and seller each need a solicitor for the conveyancing.
- 3Estate agent → accountant
The seller is a landlord. Capital gains tax on a residential sale has to be reported to HMRC within 60 days.
Examples only. Which referrals happen depends on the client, and on which firms hold your postcode area.
- 1Financial adviser → solicitor
Planning for retirement often starts with an up-to-date will and lasting powers of attorney.
- 2Financial adviser → accountant
Taking pension income changes the client’s tax position.
- 3Financial adviser → estate agent
The client decides to downsize and sell the family home.
- 4Estate agent → mortgage broker
The next home needs a later-life mortgage.
Examples only. Which referrals happen depends on the client, and on which firms hold your postcode area.
- 1Accountant → solicitor
A new company needs articles, a shareholders’ agreement and contracts.
- 2Accountant → financial adviser
Directors ask about pensions paid through the company, and cover if one of them falls ill.
- 3Accountant → mortgage broker
Self-employed income needs a broker who knows how lenders read company accounts.
Examples only. Which referrals happen depends on the client, and on which firms hold your postcode area.
- 1Solicitor → accountant
The estate needs a final tax return for the person who died.
- 2Solicitor → estate agent
The family home is valued and put up for sale.
- 3Solicitor → financial adviser
Beneficiaries want advice on what to do with what they inherit.
- 4Financial adviser → mortgage broker
One beneficiary uses an inheritance as a deposit and needs a mortgage.
Examples only. Which referrals happen depends on the client, and on which firms hold your postcode area.
Fees, commission and client consent
PCN doesn't pay or charge anything per referral. If you agree a fee with another firm, the FCA's mortgage conduct rules (MCOB) expect clear disclosure of fees and commission to the customer. Every PCN referral also records that the client agreed to be passed on.
This is a summary, not legal advice. Check your regulator’s current rules before you agree any fee with another firm.
Questions mortgage brokers ask
Anything else, call the Independent Check team on 0800 246 1094.
All questions→Do estate agents have to send buyers to me?+
No. A buyer can always choose their own broker, and an agent shouldn't make an offer depend on it. PCN makes you the broker that the agent's PCN referrals go to.
How quickly do I have to answer a referral?+
PCN reminds you after 2 working days. If you still haven't accepted or declined after 5, the referral goes back to the sender, so the client isn't kept waiting.
What if my client lives in another postcode area?+
You choose the postcode area when you send a referral, usually where the client lives. It goes to the firm that holds that area, wherever you're based.
Hold your postcode area for mortgage brokers
Membership is free. PCN charges nothing to join and takes nothing from referrals.
- 1Check your area
See whether it’s open for mortgage brokers.
- 2Create your profile
Your firm’s details. It takes about five minutes, and the area is held for 48 hours while you do it.
- 3Send and receive referrals
Start as soon as other professions in your area join. Until then, no other mortgage broker can take your area.