…6.15am, with Alexa turning on a lamp, telling me the news, then the weather, and then asking The Question of The Day.

My poor daughter gets woken with the song Jolene – very loudly as she is the deepest sleeper.

Qualifying as a mortgage broker during the pandemic has been…

…busy. However, I am told that these are strange times and the products used to last more than 24 hours before being changed.

My ideal clients are expats and those returning to the UK, so that has been a huge education in terms of how to place these clients. I was an expat myself for over 15 years, so I feel that this is the best market for me.

The Mortgage Mum was designed as a work-from-home remote business with the model up and running long before the pandemic hit.

I think I must have it easier than the existing brokers as I have come into this with clients being used to working via Teams and Zoom calls.

I wanted to become a broker because…

…I love numbers, helping people, being organised, meeting client needs, and coming up with the most practical and cost-effective solution.

These are all skills I developed in my previous career as an event producer. I thought I wanted to become an accountant but stumbled upon mortgages instead, and I couldn’t be happier that I did.

Something that surprised me about my job is…

…how no case is ever easy. We all have something that makes our situation unique to us. I would love some easier cases, but I do love the challenge of finding the right solution for a client.

My typical day entails…

…walking my daughter to school, then sitting at home in front of my desk with a cup of tea. I catch up on emails, add items to my to-do list and update my business social media.

I spend a lot of my day on the phone to lenders, as well as talking to clients, filling in online forms and doing fact-finds. I usually take a break when I pick up my daughter from school. I hang out with her for a bit and make dinner for the family, then often head back to my desk for an evening fact-find. I find that my local and repatriate clients prefer evening appointments.

My favourite work memory is…

…being told I was up for CAS status. I cannot believe I have got this far so quickly.

A perk of the job is…

…wearing my slippers to work and being able to pick up my daughter from school. I love that I don’t have to commute to work and struggle to find parking.

Yes, sometimes I do wish I was in an office environment, but my colleagues are on the other end of Teams if I want to talk through a case with them or just have a gossip.

At my old job, I had someone who would bring tea to my desk four times a day. I miss that, but having a boiling-water tap has made it less painful.

To unwind after work I…

…cook dinner for my family and watch a family movie, but only when I don’t have an evening appointment.

I know it’s not very glamorous. Maybe it’s the times, maybe it’s because I am new, or maybe it’s because I need some money to be coming in, but I am putting in long hours at the moment.

I know I will get a good work-life balance with this job but, unfortunately, I am not quite there yet.

My goal for the future is to be writing 10 mortgages a month and having time to do my various hobbies. I am also hoping to be able to go on holiday next year after having cancelled two trips this year. That would definitely help me unwind.