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Calling women mortgage advisers! I need two case studies please

Journalist: Simoney Kyriakou, FT Adviser

ended 08. December 2025

Dear all

FT Adviser is looking to interview just two women who are mortgage brokers. 

What made them join the industry? How did they come across mortgage advice as a career? How would they encourage other younger people to consider mortgage broking as a profession? And what challenges (ie AI, regulation) might be putting off new blood from coming into the profession?

Could I please hear from just a couple by EOP on Monday 8 December? 

Many thanks

Simoney

6 responses from the Newspage community

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Hannah Vandervennin
Director - Mortgage Adviser at The Mortgage Consultancy
I grew up watching my dad work as a financial adviser, surrounded by older, grey-haired men. I never saw myself represented, so I unconsciously ruled myself out of the profession. I started my career as a support worker in a homeless charity because I wanted to make a tangible difference, but I realised I was working in a system that couldn’t truly change people’s futures.

Mortgage advice surprised me, done with empathy, curiosity and entrepreneurial spirit, it can genuinely transform lives. Today I lead a team of 13 and recently took our firm Directly Authorised, specialising in complex, specialist property finance where women are still rare.

Growing up in SE London/Kent, most of my friends from BAME backgrounds never had access to financial advice. That’s why representation matters. We need more visible female and culturally diverse leaders so the next generation can see this industry is for them.
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Aaron Strutt
Product and Communications Director at Trinity Financial
Our broker Sophie Roe would be keen to chat.
I studied property finance and investment at university then moved to London to work in estate agency. Whilst I was at Uni I worked at Savills part time in the auction department which I loved. I worked closely with a mortgage advisor when I moved to London (who I am still very good friends with now!) and she encouraged me to consider it as a career. I loved working in estate agency but felt I wasn’t working to my full potential and missed the financial side of a career. The only subject I liked at school was maths, and I felt being a mortgage advisor was the perfect job for me so I could still work in property, help people and use financial skills. I could also see the earning potential which was a huge driving point for me.
We touched on it at university, but my course was more focused on commercial finance/valuations etc.
You can be qualified (passed your CEMAP exams) and in a trainee role within a few of months.
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Michelle Lawson
Director at Lawson Financial
More than happy to do this- apologies for delay- have been away!
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Gosia Dawson
Director at Glade Financial
I came into mortgage advice after working in financial services marketing, where I saw how many people were buying financial products without fully understanding them or knowing what was truly right for their situation. I wanted to change that, so I retrained as a mortgage adviser and later as an IFA to help people make clearer, more confident decisions.

Mortgage broking is a career with real impact; you support clients through major life milestones while building a flexible, rewarding profession. We need more young people, especially women, to see that their communication skills, empathy and problem-solving abilities are real strengths in this industry.

Challenges like regulation and AI can seem daunting, but they are safeguards and tools rather than obstacles. AI removes admin, not advisers. The bigger issue is visibility; mortgage advice isn’t widely promoted as a career. By sharing our stories, we can inspire the next generation of advisers.
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Kylie-Ann Martin
Director at KAG Financial
I became an advisor at twenty years old, sixteen years later I own the highest rated firm in Yorkshire, and I still love my job. Back then I was the only female in my entire team and also the youngest. Even though I worked for a very modern, forward thinking bank - I was hyper aware that I was the odd one in the team, and that there was a huge gap when it came to a female presence not only in mortgages, but in finance as a whole. The reason I became an advisor in the first place was because I loved problem solving and gained a huge amount of satisfaction from getting to know clients and being able to help them. Every client has a different story to tell so it makes the job very interesting. I get messages from other women monthly through my social media, asking how they would be able to join the industry and I honestly think it's a great career path. Extremely varied but with a huge satisfaction level.
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Sarah Ward-Novak
Broker at Identity Financial Solutions
I came into the industry as my husband has been a broker since 2000. I had been watching him, & I wanted out of my current career. I studied CeMAP in 2019, looking to make a slow transition as a SE broker. Then COVID wiped out my 25-yr marketing/events career overnight. I had to go all in as a broker, in March20, aged 44 & newly pregnant, so the pressure was intense. Six yrs on I’m still here, still growing, & genuinely love the flexibility & impact this career gives me. There’s huge potential for younger advisers if they’re ready to learn & put in the hours. It’s not a Mon–Fri, 9–5 role. You build it by showing up day or night. The real challenge I see & hear about is lead generation, especially for brokers going self-employed. Staying visible and consistent is hard, while doing the day job. I’m working on a full lead-gen funnel right now, using AI & tech platforms. Tech and AI aren’t threats for new advisers. If anything, they give you an edge. If you embrace the changes