Mortgage adviser / broker (hypoteční poradce)
A consumer credit intermediary who compares offers from several banks, helps with documents and guides the client through approval and drawdown. Under Act No. 257/2016 Coll., on consumer credit, an adviser may work only as an independent intermediary or a tied agent, after passing a professional exam and being entered in the Czech National Bank's register. Advisers are usually paid by the bank through a commission.
Example
On his own, a client gets 5.00 % from his bank on CZK 4,000,000 over 25 years, a payment of CZK 23,384. An adviser negotiates 4.70 % at another bank, with a payment of roughly CZK 22,690. The difference of around CZK 700 a month comes to over CZK 40,000 in the 5-year fixed period alone, at no cost to the client, because the bank pays the adviser's commission.
In practice
Before handing over documents, look the adviser up in the list of regulated entities on the ČNB website and ask how many banks they work with. Advisers approve nothing; the bank always decides, and an early “it'll go through” guarantees nothing. Applying through an adviser and on your own at several banks at once leaves a string of enquiries in the registers, and the banks become more cautious.
How it differs
A branch banker offers only their own bank's products. A real estate agent brokers property purchases under Act No. 39/2020 Coll., on real estate brokerage, and may have a mortgage adviser on the team, but these are two different licences and two different commissions.
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