Question Starting out as a freelancer - could do with some keyword research advice for my first client

[Eilrahhc]

I have been working as a content writer for some time agency side. I've recently made the decision to move into freelancing (during a global pandemic, great idea) with a focus on SEO content based around keyword research. However, my keyword research abilities are slightly rough as I have usually worked in a team and focused on the content production side.

My first client is a mortgage and financial advisor in the West Midlands. I'm going to be optimising six pages on their website ('Mortage Advice', 'Life Assurance', 'About Us', and a couple of more general pages). I only have an agreement to optimise existing content and moving forward, generating new content in the form of blogs.

Obviously the first step is working out keywords, so I sought a seed list from the client. They provided some very general terms:

• Mortgage advice (22k)
• Local mortgage advisor (1k)
• Do I need life assurance (10)
• Why should I speak to an advisor (10)
• How much can I borrow (10k-100k)

I am using Google Keyword Planner for my research (oh to have access to SEMRush again!), and so far have compiled these terms:
mortgage advisor west midlands (10)
independent mortgage advisor (1000)
independent mortgage advice (1000)
mortgages made simple (100)
do i need life assurance (10)
independent life insurance advice (10)
life assurance advisor west midlands (10)
solihull financial advice (10)
solihull financial advisor (10)

Moving forward, the client will be having 2-3 pieces of content a month, and I have compiled the following long-tail keywords.
why do I need life assurance? (10)
do i need life insurance with a mortgage? (1000)
why speak to a financial advisor? (10)
why use an independent financial advisor? (100)
how much can I borrow for my mortgage? (10k-100k)

So my questions really are:
- The client works only in the regional area (West Midlands). How do I optimise their content for local searches when I do not have access to their Google My Business? Is it just a matter of including the area on the page and in the meta?
- How can I use Keyword Planner more effectively to optimise content locally? I have already restricted by location.
- Have any of you worked with similar clients or in similar industries? What worked for you?

I am definitely no SEO expert, but I am looking to improve the knowledge I have so far and, hopefully, really generate some solid keywords to build content from. Any input is massively appreciated!