Mortgages, explained.
The mortgage questions banks won't answer plainly. Answered.
Clear, honest guides to UK mortgages: self-employed and complex income, contractors, limited-company directors, buy-to-let, remortgage and product transfer. When you want advice on your own case, a regulated broker can give it.
MortgageExplained is a UK mortgage information website. It explains how mortgages work in plain English. It is not a broker, not a lender and not an advice firm. The guides are free to read with no email gate.
Why this site exists
Mortgages are full of jargon, caveats and "it depends". People land on a lender's page and still cannot answer the basic questions: can I get one, how much, what do I need, what happens next. The harder cases, self-employed, one year of accounts, day-rate contractors, company directors paid in dividends and retained profit, are where the confusion is worst and where a high-street bank is most likely to say no without explaining why.
We write the real answers in plain English. Then, when you want a regulated human to actually arrange the mortgage, you choose a regulated broker yourself. That is the whole model: information first, then a real, regulated adviser of your choosing.
Where do you start?
More specific situations and tools
- Self-employed and complex income
- Company directors
- Contractors and day rate
- Key workers and professionals
- Buy-to-let and landlords
- Remortgage and the 2026 cliff
- Bad credit and declined
- Green mortgages
- Lender Criteria Index
- Answers in plain English
- Mortgage calculators
- Find a mortgage broker
How it works
- 1. Read. Find the plain-English answer to your situation. No sign-up, no email gate.
- 2. Decide. Understand your options, what a lender needs, and what is realistic.
- 3. Choose an adviser. When you want it arranged, pick a regulated broker who can advise you.
The market, in three numbers
- The Bank of England base rate is 3.75%[Bank of England], yet many fixed rates on offer are higher. We explain why on the swap rate vs base rate page.
- Around 1.8 million fixed-rate mortgage deals are scheduled to end in 2026[UK Finance], so a very large number of households face a remortgage or a product transfer decision this year.
- Internal product transfers run at roughly £261bn a year against about £77bn of external remortgaging[UK Finance]: most people simply roll over with their existing lender, which is not always the cheapest outcome.
Common questions
Is MortgageExplained a mortgage broker?
No. MortgageExplained is an information website. We explain how UK mortgages work in plain English. For regulated advice on your own case, you need a regulated mortgage broker. We do not advise, we are not a broker and we are not a lender.
Does it cost anything to use MortgageExplained?
Reading the guides is free and there is no email gate. Sending us an enquiry is free too. We do not currently pass enquiries on to brokers. If you choose to use a broker, they may charge a fee or be paid by lender commission, and they must tell you which before you commit to anything.
Who writes the content?
Every page is written by Adam Parker, who is CeMAP and CF qualified and spent over eight years as a mortgage adviser at Just Mortgages, with further experience in commercial finance.
Are you owned by a bank or a comparison site?
No. MortgageExplained is owned and operated by Muswell Rose Consulting Limited and is independent. Many well-known mortgage brands are now owned by banks, lenders or comparison conglomerates. We are not.
Founder, MortgageExplained
Adam spent over eight years as a mortgage adviser at Just Mortgages, with further experience in commercial finance. He is CeMAP and CF qualified. He built MortgageExplained to do one thing well: explain mortgages in plain English, so you know where you stand before you speak to a regulated broker. Every page on the site is written by Adam.
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