This week, Mortgage Solutions is speaking with Charlotte Felton, area director covering the North at Broker Conveyancing.
My background is a traditional legal one, starting with my relocation from the West Midlands to Manchester for university. I studied a law degree, then went straight into work for the Talbots Law firm at 20 before I graduated. I studied at law school in Birmingham part-time, around a full-time job. But, at 23, when the opportunity to move back up North and work for the country’s leading conveyancing firm came up, I took it. I have been living and working in the North of England now for 13 years and I’m proud to call it my home.
After having worked within law firms for over 10 years, I had itchy feet to get out on the ground and meet the mortgage brokers and estate agents who get the conveyancing wheels moving. After having worked with a number of panels over those 10 years, a move to Broker Conveyancing seemed a natural transition.
Which locations and broker firms do you cover in your role at Broker Conveyancing?
Stoke-on-Trent up towards Scotland, with a main focus on the North West.
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What personal talent/skill is most valuable in doing your job?
Listening and memory – in a sales role, it’s so easy to take the lead and bang your own drum, but I think listening is such a valuable skill when building relationships. It allows you to understand others deeply, respond effectively and build strong foundations. Whether in conversations, problem-solving, or collaborating, being a good listener fosters trust and opens up meaningful dialogue.
What personal talent/skill would you most like to improve on?
Effective delegation and teamwork. You can never stop improving on teamwork. At Broker Conveyancing, we have an amazing team of account managers who each bring something different to the table. Each broker who works with us has an area director in their region, and an account manager at head office.
It’s important to nurture our accounts jointly, communicate effectively and play to our strengths. Focusing on clear communication, trust-building, and understanding our team dynamics, this makes us an unrivalled support for our clients.
What’s the hardest part of your job?
Time management can be extremely difficult in this role; I have learnt it’s important to leave enough time between face-to-face appointments for general questions, crisis calls and thinking time. My role is as much about relationships as it is new business, perfecting the switch between proactivity and reactivity.
Having time to think is also crucial for me; there is no hard and fast rule about how I do business. My approach is unique to each account, based on their needs and having time to think about how I can support that business owner or individual reaching their goals on attracting new business, internal efficiency, partnership service, their profitability and team morale is crucial. My most successful accounts see me as an extension to their team, we stay close and they know they can call on me to ask for help with anything.
What do you love most about your job?
My clients, the real people behind the job title mortgage broker/adviser. And problem-solving – I am a heavily solution-focused person. Nothing is more rewarding than solving a problem or offering a solution to my clients.
What’s the best bit of career-related advice you’ve ever been given?
From my mum: “Dress for success.”
From my first mentor: “Never burn your bridges.” Maintaining positive connections can really pay off down the line. You never know when paths might cross again or when those relationships could come in handy.
How do you keep up to date with developments in the market?
Industry press, our group internal insights and data, and, of course, by talking to my broker clients about what’s happening on the ground.
What is the most quirky/unique property deal you’ve been involved in?
Back when I was a practising conveyancer, I acted for a couple emigrating to Australia. Through the enquiry process, the purchaser asked if they could rehome the vendor’s elderly cat and all their Koi carp. Adding their cat (18-year-old Stanley) and all the fish (with photographs) to the TA10, and having to give special mention to them during the exchange of contracts phone call – that is one I won’t forget.
Tell us about your trickiest case – what happened and how did you resolve the problem(s)?
When a vendor passes away during the conveyancing process, this is always very difficult. I have encountered this several times over the years. Having to manage the expectation of all parties, advise on the complexities this brings, while liaising with the bereaved family, is extremely difficult. Another was selling a property for a client in prison. That certainly came with its challenges.
What was your motivation for choosing this career?
Helping people. I am naturally compassionate and thrive on finding solutions.
If you could do any other job in the property sector, what would it be and why?
An estate agent or mortgage broker. In the home moving journey, I always say there are two camps: the dream makers and the dream breakers. Those who clients pay to make them happy, who bring the excitement (the estate agents and mortgage brokers) and those who they pay to tell them the worst bits, identify the risks, etc., (the solicitors and surveyors) – both camps being absolutely essential. I’ve been a dream breaker as a conveyancer, and it would be nice to see things from the other side of the camp.
What did you want to be growing up?
A lawyer always. Perhaps not a conveyancer, but a litigator. I tried that in my early days in child protection, and realised I was to be a non-contentious lawyer. An adviser, not an adversary.
If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
The ability to speak to animals. I foster toy breed rescue dogs in my spare time, and I wish I could communicate with them, to find out their little stories and what sort of new parents they’d like.
What is your strategy for tackling challenges?
Start with a can-do attitude, collect all the facts – not just one view or anecdote – and break the problem down into smaller, manageable parts. I analyse the problem to understand it fully, then I brainstorm potential solutions and weigh their pros and cons. Finally, I recommend the possible courses of action – while being adaptable to new information, the needs of my clients or the regulatory restrictions of conveyancing.
