Quick answer: Mortgage advertising is regulated on both platforms. On Meta, select the Financial Products and Services Special Ad Category. On Google, complete Financial Services Verification where enforced, and don’t use restricted demographic or ZIP targeting in the US and Canada. Lead with education and comparison, not rates you can’t guarantee.
Mortgage leads are valuable and competitive. The brokers who succeed combine compliant ads with fast, personal follow-up: a borrower usually works with whoever calls first and explains things clearly.
What ads cost for mortgage brokers
| Benchmark | Avg. cost per click | Conversion rate | Avg. cost per lead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Search: Finance & Insurance | $3.39 | 2.64% | $74.44 |
Finance & Insurance averages $3.39 per click but only a 2.64% conversion rate, giving $74.44 per lead on Google (WordStream 2026). Low conversion rates mean landing pages and follow-up matter more than click price.
Which channel to start with
Channel roles:
- Google Search for “mortgage broker [city]”, “refinance” and first-home-buyer searches
- Facebook and Instagram (Financial Products category) for education: borrowing-power checks, first-home-buyer guides
- YouTube for explainers
- Referral partners (agents, accountants) alongside ads
Google Ads keywords for mortgage brokers
Intent and life-stage terms.
- “mortgage broker near me”, “home loan broker [city]”
- “refinance home loan”, “remortgage” (UK)
- “first home buyer loan”, “first time buyer mortgage”
- “investment property loan”, “self employed home loan”
Negative keywords to add on day one
calculator only, jobs, course, salary, definition, meaning, bank name login, customer service phone.
More on this in negative keywords explained and choosing keywords.
Example ads you can adapt
Keep rate claims accurate and include required comparison rates or disclosures for your jurisdiction. Don’t imply the viewer has debt or poor credit (Meta personal attributes).
What the landing page needs
- Licence and registration numbers
- Lender panel and how you are paid
- Borrowing-power or repayment calculator
- Short fact-find form
- Reviews
Full list: landing page checklist.
Track the right things
- Qualified leads (fact-find completed)
- Applications lodged
- Settled loans and commission per campaign
Platform rules that apply to mortgage brokers
- Meta Financial Products and Services Special Ad Category (it replaced the old Credit category) is required for these ads; age, gender and detailed targeting are restricted and minimum location radiuses apply. Since January 2025 Meta lists insurance under this category.
- Google Financial Services Verification applies in 42 countries, including the UK and Australia, and Google has announced it for the US and Canada in early 2027. You must show you are authorised by the relevant regulator before financial services ads serve.
- Google (US and Canada): housing, employment and consumer-finance ads can’t target by age, gender, parental status, marital status or ZIP code.
- Your national credit and consumer-protection laws (for example rules on comparison rates and responsible lending) apply to every ad.
Common mistakes
- Running finance ads without the Special Ad Category
- Advertising rates that aren’t available to most applicants
- Slow follow-up
- Not completing Google verification before launch
How much to spend
Work backwards from the number of enquiries you can handle. Monthly budget ≈ target leads × expected cost per lead. At the Finance & Insurance average of $74.44 per lead, 20 leads a month is roughly $1,489 in ad spend before management fees.
Brokers commonly start with $1,500 to $4,000 a month across Google and Meta.
Frequently asked questions
Do mortgage brokers need the Special Ad Category on Facebook?
Yes. Mortgages and loans are financial products, and Meta requires the Financial Products and Services category, which limits targeting.
Do mortgage brokers need Google verification?
In countries where Google enforces Financial Services Verification (42 countries, with the US and Canada announced for early 2027), yes.
What converts best for mortgage ads?
Educational offers (guides, borrowing-power checks) plus fast, personal follow-up.
Sources
- Meta for Developers: Special Ad Categories (housing, employment, financial products and services)
- Google Ads policy: Financial Services Verification, relevant regulators and enforcement dates
- Google Ads blog: Financial Services Verification coming to the US and Canada
- Google Ads policy: Restricted targeting in personalized advertising (housing, employment, consumer finance)
- WordStream by LocaliQ: 2026 Google Ads benchmarks (13,474 US search campaigns, Apr 2025 to Mar 2026)
- Meta Advertising Standards: Privacy violations and personal attributes
Want a second opinion on your mortgage ads? Get a free ad review and you will get a short written breakdown of what to fix first.
Written by Gregory
20 years building websites and running lead generation, mostly with my own money on the line. Based in Sydney, working with clients worldwide. How I work →