Our Story The Mortgage Broker

The Mortgage Broker was founded in 2003 by Darren Pescod as a family run business in St Neots. With an ethos of personal service to it’s core, it grew through relationships, hard work and a reputation for looking after people properly. These roots still matter to us today.

In 2023, the business entered a new chapter when Sam Kirtikar acquired The Mortgage Broker. Sam had already worked closely with the business as a consultant, helping guide it through the pressures of the pandemic and supporting clients when good advice mattered most. What stood out was not just the brand, but the people behind it and the genuine care shown to every customer.

Sam’s background was not built in traditional mortgage sales. Before leading The Mortgage Broker, he worked in financial law and restructuring, then moved into mortgages through Clever Lending and Clever Mortgages within the Totemic Group, home to PayPlan, one of the UK’s largest free-to-consumer debt help organisations. Working with clients in IVAs, debt management plans and other complex financial situations shaped a clear belief: mortgage advice should never just be about securing a deal. Done properly, it can provide stability, breathing space and a route forward for many people.

That belief now sits at the heart of The Mortgage Broker. Every recommendation should be suitable, affordable and sustainable. Not just right on paper, but right for the client in real life.

We do not chase quick wins or push products for the sake of it and we provide guidance and support bespoke to every clients personal situation. We take the time to understand each client’s circumstances, explain their options clearly and guide them through some of the biggest financial decisions they will ever make. That includes both mortgage and protection advice, because getting the right outcome is about more than one transaction, it is about protecting the bigger picture.

Since the takeover, we have invested heavily in strengthening the business while protecting what made it special in the first place and we have built our service around two non-negotiables: trust and communication. 

• Trust matters because clients come to us with personal financial information and major life plans. They need to know they are dealing with people who will be honest, diligent and focused on the right outcome, not the easy one.
• Communication matters because mortgages and protection can feel stressful, especially in a difficult market. Clients deserve clarity, responsiveness and support from the first conversation through to completion and beyond. Five star service is not just about being friendly but making sure you are there, being clear and doing what you say you will do.

Although we are a UK-wide business, we have deliberately held on to the feel of a real, approachable company and working remotely across the country has meant we have to maintain core channels and platforms, with regular team events and meetings to keep our values consistent. Our head office is in St Neots, and we remain proud of our family-business roots and we are not corporate for the sake of it. We believe good advice should feel personal, clear and human.

At the same time, we take standards seriously. Our advice is regulated, our calls are recorded, and our processes are designed to protect customers and maintain a consistently high level of service. We believe doing things properly is not a nice extra, it is the job, and Consumer Duty is of paramount importance to our day to day advice we provide.

“I have always believed that when mortgage advice is done properly, everybody wins. The client gets a solution that is suitable, affordable and sustainable, and the business earns trust the right way. That is exactly what we are building at The Mortgage Broker.”
Sam Kirtikar, CEO

We are very open about our fee structure as expert advice has real value, long term benefit and we do not hide from that. But we also believe customers should be able to speak to us, understand their options and get clarity before making a commitment and that is why we offer a no mortgage, no fee guarantee. Anyone can speak to use, get free advice, search their best options, get guidance and use any of our free tools to help understand their position. Only when a client chooses to proceed with us, after full research and presentation of options is complete, when every customers knows exactly what they are paying for, is a fee ever charged. Even then we only charge a broker fee, when the mortgage is offered. Experienced advice, hard work behind the scenes and a team focused on getting the right result is what saves our clients thousands of pounds each year.

The way we look after our people matters too. We believe great service starts inside the business and to have excellence externally, you must have excellence internally. When people are trusted, supported and given room to grow, they do better work, especially in today’s world when flexibility, remote working and family balance is at the forefront. That is why we have built a culture around accountability, flexibility and high standards, rather than micromanagement. We want our advisers, protection specialists and broker support team to bring their own personality to the role and take pride in the service they provide.

Over the years, the business has earned awards, nominations and five-star reviews that we are genuinely very proud of. Those things matter because they reflect the experience our customers receive. But they are not the whole story. The real measure of our business is simpler than that: when someone trusts us with one of the biggest financial decisions of their life, do we look after them properly? That is the standard we set for ourselves every day.

The Mortgage Broker began as a family business. Today, it is a growing UK-wide brand built on the same core belief: do right by the customer, communicate properly, and build trust through actions, not slogans.

If you are looking for mortgage and protection advice that is personal, professional and built around your long term interests, we would be proud to help.