Moneywatch Finance

“Without doubt we would not own our dream home if it wasn’t for Matthew” When my husband suggested that we should use a financial adviser to help us with our house move I was very sceptical and told him that we didn’t need someone to help us and it would be a waste of money to pay someone for something that we could do ourselves. I was also weary of how trustworthy, reliable and independent a financial advisor might be. Well, it’s safe to say that my initial preconceptions couldn’t have been more wrong!! After some persuasive discussions with my husband and recommendations from Matthew’s previous clients we arranged to meet. When meeting Matthew for the first time he took time to get to know us personally and what we wanted from our sale and purchase. When exploring what our financial situation was, he relieved our anxieties but was honest in the advice he gave about what was achievable for us and what was out of our reach. At this first meeting he established a figure for what we could borrow (subject to approval), and talked us through the mortgage application, selling and purchasing processes. All of this advice was completely free and we could have walked away from the meeting and decided not to use Matt’s services. However, we had learnt so much in such a short time that we felt it would be silly to turn down such valuable help in an area that we were completely naive to. When it came to selling our flat, Matt advised us on the offers we received and what that would mean in terms of the profit and subsequent mortgage we could get. He also encouraged us to make contact with our buyer to establish a relationship which proved invaluable when dealing with some of the legal matters later down the line. In terms of finding and securing our new home, this is where Matt really earned his fee and the recommendation that we would give to all including our closest friends and family. After being told by the estate agents that there were no available viewings for 4 days, he encouraged us to phone back up and push to arrange a viewing sooner; this worked and we went to view the house that evening. We instantly knew this was the house for us so got in touch with Matt who then put in the offer and took forward all of the negotiation on our behalf. His knowledge and established relationship with the estate agents meant he was able to get our first offer accepted and the house taken straight off the market so no one else could view it! Matthew then got to work on arranging our Mortgage; he again talked us through the options, clearly explaining the advantages and disadvantages to the various providers in relation to our personal situation. From application to approval the process only took around two weeks and that was with a delay in us being able to get hold of some old pay information. Then came the legal process… To make sure this review is completely honest, I do have to say that we had some difficulties with the solicitors (Premier Property Lawyers) that were recommended by Matt, but I do think we got unlucky with the particular solicitor we dealt with as we had also received recommendations for this firm from some colleagues too. That said, due to the issues we had we would certainly not recommend them to anyone else and looking at the recent reviews for PPL it seems that the issues may not be exclusive to us. Throughout what turned out to be a very long and sometimes stressful process partly due to various issues with solicitors (not just ours but also the buyers and vendors!) and some problems with the title plan on what we were buying, Matthew was available to support us whenever we needed him. I’m not sure he would want us to advertise this but he even Skyped us from his Holiday in Mexico!! He always had our best interests at heart and in our opinion went far beyond the role of a financial advisor. He took countless calls and emails from us, giving us advice, calming us down and intervening when needed. I can honestly say without doubt that we would not own our dream house if it wasn’t for Matthew. To thank him, it’s only taken us 6 weeks to write this review…sorry Matthew!!! :-D Now living happily in our new home and expecting our first baby… Hope you can make the housewarming Matt! Katie and Rich Pell

After spending a good decade saving and working towards this moment, my wife and I have just collected the keys to our first house. After saving up most of a deposit, we were massively confused as to how to proceed and where to start. We were recommended Moneywatch finance (Matt) through a. A mutual friend and we are so happy that we made that call to meet up. Matt knows the financial world better than anyone I have ever met and can explain and put simply his decades of experience and advice to people like us who don't necessarily understand it. The service is impartial and unique to our needs. Being self employed would usually denote worse rates and more litigation, but not for Matt who got us a better rate than we could possibly find ourselves and personally walk us through the application. All in all this has been a great first experience and we will be back in a few years for the next one. I would highly recommend Moneywatch Finance to anyone looking for financial advice!

Director at Stratford Accountancy Services Limited “ I have known Matthew for several years now, after a chance meeting at a mutual clients. Matthew has arranged Mortgage Finance for my wife and I, and then again for our two sons who have finally fled the nest - thanks Matthew!! Not only is Matt personable and very easy to get on with, but he has a great in depth knowledge of the market, which is ever changing these days - he is also creative and ensures that you have thought everything through before undertaking the best deal around. We had problems with Solicitors along the way and Matt was very active in resolving the issues for us - even though it was outside of his duty to us. A real top guy that you can trust every step of the way