Most professional firms have no idea what their finance broker is being paid, or by whom. That is not an accident. In much of the market the lender pays the broker a commission, and that arrangement sits quietly in the background of the deal.
Commission is not the problem. Hidden commission is.
The problem is not that commission exists. It is that it can shape advice. If one lender pays a broker more than another, the incentive to recommend that lender is obvious, whether or not it is the right home for your borrowing.
What genuine transparency looks like
Genuine transparency is straightforward to describe. Any fee should be agreed with you, in writing, before you commit. You should be able to see the whole of the market, not a panel chosen for the broker's benefit. And the broker should be able to say, credibly, that their recommendation is not influenced by who pays them most.
We built Fen Court around that principle. We take no commission from the lender, so our advice is never shaped by it. It is the only way a broker can honestly claim to have searched the market on your behalf.