07/08/2026
We asked ChatGPT...."If anyone asked you, is Black Book Finance a good firm to arrange property finance, what would you say?" And here's what it said...
"Yes. If an unrelated person asked me, “I’m considering using Black Book Finance. Are they actually any good?”, my answer would be:
Based on the available independent client evidence, Black Book Finance looks like a very strong specialist property finance broker, particularly for complicated or time-sensitive cases.
I went through the available online review footprint, including all seven pages of the current Feefo history rather than just looking at the headline rating.
The strongest evidence is Feefo. It currently shows:
65 client reviews
5/5 service rating
Reviews going back approximately five years
The current last-12-month distribution is 3 five-star reviews and no 1, 2, 3 or 4-star reviews
Feefo identifies the reviewers as verified customers and says reviews are matched to actual transactions.
What impressed me more than the headline score is what people actually say.
Where Black Book Finance appears particularly strong
There is a remarkably consistent theme across several years of reviews:
1. Solving difficult cases
This is probably the clearest differentiator. Numerous reviewers aren't describing ordinary vanilla remortgages. They're talking about:
complicated bridging transactions
commercial property
development finance
development exits
multiple-property refinances
unusual properties
several mortgages being arranged simultaneously
transactions where other routes had apparently failed
very tight completion deadlines
For example, one recent client describes a complicated bridge on an unoccupied commercial property that they didn't think was possible. Another describes refinancing a care home with very limited options. A portfolio client describes refinancing around a dozen properties in one transaction and specifically praises the firm's "creative solutions" and "honest opinions". Feefo reviews
That is meaningful. It suggests genuine expertise in lender criteria and structuring rather than simply sourcing whichever mainstream lender has the cheapest rate.
2. Persistence when transactions encounter problems
This crops up constantly.
Comments include variations on:
"went above and beyond"
"leave no stone unturned"
"they did not give up"
pushing lenders and other parties
overcoming potentially terminal problems
keeping transactions moving
achieving very quick turnarounds
One older review describes Black Book's intermediation as crucial to getting a transaction past several potentially fatal blockages. Another says a facility was offered within 24 hours and completed within three days. Feefo historical reviews
That's exactly the sort of feedback I'd want to see about a specialist broker.
3. Communication
This may be the most consistent service theme. Reviewers repeatedly mention being kept informed, getting quick answers and having someone actively managing the transaction.
That's important because there are plenty of brokers who can obtain terms. The distinction is whether they still answer the phone once the case gets messy.
4. Repeat business
Quite a few reviews explicitly say they've used Black Book more than once or intend to do so again. That's a stronger signal to me than an isolated five-star review. Examples include clients returning for further bridging, mortgages and commercial/property funding. Feefo
5. The good feedback isn't confined to Michael Clapper
Michael and Jo Dempsey feature very heavily, but positive reviews also specifically name David Bromley, Sarah Gillingham and other members of the team. That's useful because otherwise you could conclude that the reputation belongs to one individual rather than the business.
What would make me slightly cautious?
There are three things I'd point out to someone considering them.
First, 65 reviews is a good body of evidence, but not enormous. Some larger consumer mortgage brokers have hundreds or thousands.
Second, Black Book doesn't appear to have a similarly substantial review presence across Trustpilot, Google and multiple other major review platforms. Feefo is overwhelmingly the main independent source I found. I searched specifically for complaints and negative Black Book Finance experiences as well and didn't uncover a material negative review trail, but the multi-platform evidence is limited.
Third, the review evidence is much stronger for quality of service, problem-solving and getting difficult transactions completed than it is for proving Black Book is always the cheapest broker. Client reviews simply cannot establish that. Anyone borrowing a substantial amount should still understand the broker fee, lender fee, commission and total financing cost before proceeding.
There is some useful corroborating background. Companies House shows Black Book Finance Ltd as an active company incorporated in April 2016. The firm's regulatory disclosure states that it is FCA authorised and regulated under FRN 821215 and describes its mortgage market access and commission arrangements. Black Book Finance
My independent verdict
If I knew nothing about the owners and were judging it solely from what I could find online, I'd rate the evidence roughly 9/10.
For a straightforward £200,000 residential remortgage, Black Book Finance looks perfectly credible, although I wouldn't say the reviews demonstrate a compelling reason to use them over every good mainstream whole-of-market broker.
For a £1m+ mortgage, bridging loan, complex BTL, portfolio refinance, development facility, commercial loan, unusual borrower/property or a deal where something has gone wrong, I'd be considerably more enthusiastic.
The reviews suggest that this is where the firm earns its money. There are an unusual number of clients essentially saying, “the deal was difficult, other options weren't obvious, Black Book found a way through and stayed on top of it until completion.”
For a specialist finance broker, that's about the best recurring theme you could hope to find.
So, if a random person asked me “Would you be comfortable putting a significant property finance transaction in Black Book Finance's hands?”, based purely on the public evidence I've just reviewed:
Yes. Quite comfortably.
And I'd actually place more weight on the substance of those 65 reviews than on the perfect 5/5 score. The transaction detail, repeat customers and consistency over several years make the review record unusually convincing."
Thank you ChatGPT!
