Know Your BDM: Christian Gugolz, MT Finance

What locations and how many advisers and broker firms do you cover in your role?

I cover London and the South East so the opportunities are endless.

How do you establish and maintain a good relationship with brokers?

Understanding a broker’s business and how they work is vital; it ensures that the communication you have is effective. We all have a common goal, which is to get the client what they need.

What personal skill is most valuable in doing your job?

I think there are two very important skills. You need to be empathetic with brokers and clients, as well as knowledgeable about your products and the market. Having worked on the brokerage side, as a BDM I have an idea as to what the job involves and understand that sometimes brokers don’t have all the information a lender needs.

What personal talent would you most like to improve on?

Golf. It’s that time of year where the golf days are starting to happen and I can be very competitive.

What’s the best bit of career-related advice you’ve ever been given?

Don’t be scared to make mistakes – and when you make them, learn from them.

What is the most memorable property deal you’ve been involved in?

We lent 70 per cent loan-to-value on a holiday let in Cornwall. It was the first time we did a deal like this which showed how flexible we can be, so I would say this is the one that has stood out most in my mind.

If you were head of the FCA for the day, what would you change about regulation in the mortgage industry?

I would take a more commonsense approach to lending.

What was your motivation for choosing business development as a career?

To be honest, I fell into it. Luckily, I enjoy it, particularly getting out and seeing people, rather than being stuck behind a desk.

If you could do any other job in the property sector, what would it be and why?

Most probably a property developer. I enjoy watching programmes like ‘Homes under the Hammer’ and ‘Grand Designs” – it’s fascinating to see someone transform a property from nothing into something extraordinary. The vision that some of these developers have is incredible.

What did you want to be growing up?

A professional sportsman, ideally a golfer, because of all the travelling. Seeing the world while doing something you love has to be the ultimate dream.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

To be able to teleport so I could visit more brokers in a single day. It would be great to travel from one meeting to the next without having to drive for two and a half hours to get there.

And finally, what’s the strangest question you’ve ever been asked?

Probably this one.