Mortgage Professional Australia issue 19.06

MPAMAGAZINE.COM.AU ISSUE 19.06

HERE FOR YOU Top aggregators discuss the industry’s most important issues

TOP 10 BROKERAGES Maintaining business success in a tough year

00_OFC_SUBBED.indd 2

ALT-DOC LOANS How to best help your self-employed borrowers

NOAH BRESLOW The global CEO of OnDeck talks small business

3/06/2019 6:41:50 AM

01-IFC_Contents_SUBBED.indd 1

3/06/2019 6:46:28 AM

JUNE 2019

CONNECT WITH US

CONTENTS

Got a story or suggestion, or just want to find out some more information? twitter.com/MPA_Australia facebook.com/Mortgage ProfessionalAU

UPFRONT 02 Editorial

The industry is a little more settled

04 Statistics

16

28 FEATURES

AN ALTERNATIVE SOLUTION Lenders discuss the product that can provide alternative routes to finance for the self-employed

SPECIAL REPORT

BIG INTERVIEW

NOAH BRESLOW

The global CEO at online lender OnDeck found a passion for small businesses and a need to help them with finance

12

06 Head to head

Three brokers discuss the impact of technology

08 News analysis

The industry reacts to the federal election

10 Opinion

A post-mortem of the industry’s ‘near death experience’

PEOPLE

2019 AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE

Eight major aggregators discuss and debate the most important topics in the industry right now, including clawback, working with the government, and ownership of aggregators

Figures show the changing appetite of lenders

54 Career path

36

How the founder of MoneyPlace started the fintech firm

56 Other life

The ‘Silver Fox’ who uses strategy to outplay the younger generation

FEATURES

KEEPING COMPLIANT

Find out how NextGen.Net is working to help brokers with variations

TOP 10 BROKERAGES 2019

40

SPECIAL REPORT

TOP 10 BROKERAGES

Despite the challenges of the last year, these brokerages have continued to adapt their businesses

MPAMAGAZINE.COM.AU NOW ONLINE: Our daily newsletter. Keep on top of property market trends, business strategy, and what industry leaders have to say.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

01-IFC_Contents_SUBBED.indd 1

1

3/06/2019 6:47:04 AM

UPFRONT

EDITOR’S LETTER www.mpamagazine.com.au JUNE 2019

A clearer path

A

fter months of waiting and worrying, the industry can rest a little easier following the federal election in May, which you can read more about on pages 8 to 9.

This month’s magazine is another full one, including our Top 10 Brokerages list and a comprehensive report on MPA’s live-streamed aggregators panel.

While writing these reports I got to talk to a number of brokers and aggregators, and the big theme that came out of our conversations was the worry around hiring staff. Not only are seasoned brokers waiting before they expand their businesses, but even those thinking about entering the industry are nervous.

Now that they are are not facing losing trail commission next year, hopefully these businesses can begin to think about their growth again.

As always, talking to brokers in our Top 10 lists allows me to learn how they are adapting and growing despite the tough conditions of the past 18 months. While most, if not all, have recognised that diversification is key as house prices continue to fall, some have looked at what other value they can add for their clients.

What became clear from all these interviews is brokers’ passion for the industry, and that broker groups across the country have rallied together While these brokers have all seen challenges, they told me they were taking the time to train and educate their staff so that when things picked up again they would be ready.

The other thing that became clear from all these interviews is brokers’ passion for the industry, and how broker groups across the country have rallied together.

One of the brokers in our Top 10 said to me that he was not only training his own staff but bringing in independent brokers who might need to workshop deals or scenarios. He sees his job as not just about looking out for his team but also as a wider responsibility to the industry.

In case you missed the live-streamed aggregators panel, the report in this magazine goes over some of the crucial topics we discussed on the day. It was a great event, and although these things always make me a little nervous, I’d like to thank the participants for being fantastic people to host.

EDITORIAL

SALES & MARKETING

Editor Rebecca Pike

National Sales Manager Claire Tan

Journalists Tom Goodwin, Abel Riototar Contributor Tim Brown Production Editor Roslyn Meredith

ART & PRODUCTION Designer Cess Rodriguez Traffic Coordinator Freya Demegilio

Global Head of Communications in Marketing Lisa Narroway

CORPORATE Chief Executive Officer Mike Shipley Chief Operating Officer George Walmsley Managing Director Justin Kennedy Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil

EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES

tel: +612 8437 4784 rebecca.pike@keymedia.com

SUBSCRIPTION ENQUIRIES

tel: +61 2 8311 5831 • fax: +61 2 8437 4753 subscriptions@keymedia.com.au

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES claire.tan@keymedia.com

Key Media Regional head office Level 10, 1–9 Chandos St, St Leonards, NSW 2065, Australia tel: +61 2 8437 4700 • fax: +61 2 9439 4599 www.keymedia.com Offices in Sydney, Auckland, Denver, London, Toronto, Manila, Singapore, Seoul

Mortgage Professional Australia is part of an international family of B2B publications and websites for the mortgage industry CANADIAN MORTGAGE PROFESSIONAL neil.sharma@kmimedia.ca T +1 416 644 8740

Rebecca Pike, editor, MPA Copyright is reserved throughout. No part of this publication can be reproduced in whole or part without the express permission of the editor. Contributions are invited, but copies of work should be kept, as the magazine can accept no responsibility for loss.

2

www.mpamagazine.com.au

02-03_Editorial_SUBBED.indd 2

3/06/2019 6:49:08 AM

02-03_Editorial_SUBBED.indd 3

3/06/2019 6:49:17 AM

UPFRONT

STATISTICS

Lending after the storm Non-banks, with their capacity to be “nimbler” and their zero-presales policy, are a ray of sunshine to borrowers AS THE banking sector recovers from the perfect storm created by APRA restraints, the royal commission and the final Hayne report, lenders are looking to grow their loan books and develop new products for the changing market, according to Stamford Capital’s 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey.

Over 100 lenders participated in the survey described as “a barometer of lending sentiment and an early identifier of market trends”. They included major and non-banks, private lenders and second-tier banks. The report found that lenders overwhelmingly believe the housing

41%

50%

of lenders looking to develop think royal commission will negatively new products in 2019/20 impact banks’ commercial lending

market is going down – a jump of 50% on last year. They also foresee an interest rate decline in 2019 that could sustain the residential sector.

“The presales hurdle is now a barricade in the market, and this is where we are witnessing one of the biggest divides between bank and nonbank lenders. It is no surprise that non-bank lenders are continuing to gain momentum,” said Stamford’s executive director, Michael Hynes. “Lenders are definitely looking to find their feet in this rapidly changing landscape, and typically the non-bank lenders are nimbler at this as they are not governed by APRA.”

65%

expect APRA to boost oversight of non-bank sector

AN APPETITE FOR CONSTRUCTION Although lenders’ appetite for construction loans has lessened with the easing of the apartment boom, the appetite of non-banks for investment and construction deals that fail to meet the banks’ criteria is expected to increase.

The development book of banks is “now paid down, so they need to find a replacement, and this will drive them into investment asset financing”, said Stamford Capital’s executive director, Michael Hynes.

Lender appetite for construction: Majors vs non-banks

75%

expect non-banks to increase appetite for construction loans

Source: Stamford Capital Australia, 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey report

FROM ZERO TO 100

The pressure to meet presales targets is now one of the biggest obstacles to gaining access to bank capital that developers face: 84% of major and second-tier banks require 60–100% presales, compared to 34% of non-bank lenders requiring zero presales.

Presales hurdle becomes a barricade

56%

of lenders say the commercial property investment market has peaked

27%

say it’s in decline

83%

think the residential development site market is now in decline

59%

up from last year

85%

believe residential apartment and housing markets are now in decline

50%

up from last year

Source: Stamford Capital Australia, 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey report

4

HELLO ICR, GOODBYE LVR Interest cover ratio (ICR) has replaced loan-to-value ratio (LVR) as the preferred metric for bank credit assessments, and 60% of term-debt lenders want an ICR of 1.5x or higher for investment lending.

Interestingly, 15% of all lenders, 24% of which are non-banks, are prepared to look at financing at 1x ICR or less.

Interest cover ratio: What lenders want

60%

59%

of all lenders need minimum of 1.5x or more ICR for investment loans – including 95% of banks

of non-bank lenders are willing to lend for projects with 1.5x ICR or less

15%

90%

of lenders will look at financing projects at 1 x ICR or less

expect their interest cover hurdle to remain the same

Source: Stamford Capital Australia, 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey report

www.mpamagazine.com.au

04-05_Stats_SUBBED.indd 4

3/06/2019 6:50:58 AM

MAJOR BANKS

NON-MAJOR BANKS

will increase construction loan margins to offset volume decline

have a greater appetite to increase investment and construction lending

15%

Construction

37%

67%

Investment

Construction

75%

Investment

Source: Stamford Capital Australia, 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey report

STILL ROOM FOR GROWTH

Despite weakening market sentiment and the banks’ rigid criteria, 73% of survey respondents are considering increasing their loan book, down from 92% last year.

However, one in two lenders expect their loan margins to remain unchanged.

Loan margin expectations

The over-10% loan book increase expected by respondents “may sound optimistic, but it’s likely to be driven by the number of non-bank lenders who entered the market over the last 12 months”, said Stamford Capital executive director Michael Hynes.

He advised anyone concerned about presales to start looking at alternative providers.

Non-banks expanding foothold

33% expect loan margins to increase

TIME TO CONSIDER NON-BANKS

98%

50%

of lenders looking to maintain or increase loan book size

expect loan margins to remain the same

Source: Stamford Capital Australia, 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey report

56%

of lenders want to increase loan book by 15%

62%

of non-bank lenders expect it to increase by 15%

90%

of non-bank lenders expect to increase or maintain their loan book

Source: Stamford Capital Australia, 2019 Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey report

www.mpamagazine.com.au

04-05_Stats_SUBBED.indd 5

5

3/06/2019 11:36:47 AM

UPFRONT

HEAD TO HEAD

How is technology having an impact on your business?

Growth and success seem impossible to attain without the support of new tech tools

Rebecca Jarrett-Dalton

Deanna Ezzy

Founder Two Red Shoes

Director More Than Mortgages

I love tech. I’m a total gadget junky. In the current climate in which compliance and fast-paced delivery are key, tech, such as DocuSign and bankstatements.com.au, provides solutions that improve speed and accuracy. Most clients are visual. I present with an iPad and email presentation drawings so I have a copy for my records and they have a future roadmap. The method builds referrals. My devices collect ID and other documents and securely send them straight to cloud drives, removing privacy risks and saving time and space used for storing paper. Tech provides amazing tools to streamline my business.

Everything from lead generation to delivery is enhanced by current technology trends.

Technology is a huge part of my business.

We use a variety of platforms to help with our processes; these include bankstatements. com for collection of bank statements and living expense verification, Pipedrive to track submitted loans and leads, Salesforce for our CRM, Mailchimp for newsletters, LinxCRM to track commissions, SendOutCards for physical birthday cards for clients, and GoToMeeting for virtual meetings. Next on the list for me is Acuity Scheduling and Zapier. Acuity Scheduling prevents any back and forth between me and my clients when they’re booking appointments, and Zapier links Acuity to Salesforce and my Outlook calendar. I would have no idea how to operate a business without all these tools!

Ian Simpson

Personal mortgage adviser Smartline Mortgage brokers are in the information transfer business. This means we are among the major beneficiaries of technology. We are in a uniquely fortunate position of being able to capitalise on technology to do our jobs faster and deliver better outcomes for clients.

There are numerous tech tools that I now find indispensable in my daily business life. For example, I regularly use bankstatements.com.au, the CoreLogic Pro app (RP Data), iPhone Text Replacement, Gmail Text Expander, Siri, Trello, TurboScan, 10bii Financial Calculator, DocuSign, Evernote, Google Drive and Otter.

Technology allows for continuous process improvements, and this will only get better as more investment flows into fintech.

DIGITAL ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES The Commercial and Asset Finance Broker Association (CAFBA) has secured a two-year $100,000 grant from the government to develop a digital advice program under the Small Business Digital Champions project. The program’s purpose is to inform and educate CAFBA members so they can help small businesses become more effective, competitive and, ultimately, profitable. The association is in the process of building a curriculum that will assist its members on their digital journey.

It includes understanding technology and the digital economy, website and online content development, social media and digital marketing, as well as how to work with digital vendors and suppliers.

6

www.mpamagazine.com.au

06_Head_to_Head_SUBBED_Pic to come.indd 6

3/06/2019 11:30:00 AM

06_Head_to_Head_SUBBED_Pic to come.indd 7

3/06/2019 11:30:11 AM

UPFRONT

NEWS ANALYSIS

Federal election 2019 After months of uncertainty and campaigning following the royal commission’s final report, Australia’s federal election provided some comfort for mortgage brokers THE MORTGAGE BROKING industry collectively breathed a sigh of relief last month when the ‘surprise’ results of the federal election were announced. While all polls had suggested a clear win for Labor, the right voters turned out on the day to secure another term in government for the Liberals.

This means brokers are not facing the removal of trail next year but also that other policies criticised for being detrimental to the housing market will not come into play.

The hard work by the broking industry will not stop there, however. While the Liberal proposition was certainly better for broking businesses, there is still going to be a consultation in three years’ time to look at the impact of removing commissions.

“Now is not the time to rest on our laurels,” wrote Mike Felton, CEO of the MFAA. The association outlined its plans to continue working with the government and Treasury to ensure the best interests of the broking industry and, ultimately, borrowers.

In the week leading up to the election, brokers became more vocal in their last-ditch push to inform customers and stand up for the industry. Speaking after the results, managing director of 1st Street Financial and former MPA number one broker Jeremy Fisher said it was a “great outcome”, but it was not over yet.

“We now need to continue to work with government – and in particular Treasury – to ensure there is continual engagement and accountability upheld so that what was agreed

8

upon is honoured,” Fisher said.

“Best interest duty needs to be adopted and rolled out, plus – and most importantly – we need to make sure that remuneration is no longer a concern or topic in three years’ time.

To do this, our industry needs to prove the current model is most appropriate for all stakeholders. We definitely can’t be doing nothing – now is the time to step up.”

Negative gearing The Labor party had pledged to reform negative gearing and capital gains tax, including removing negative gearing for investors buying existing properties. After the Liberal win, experts began downgrading the risk to the property market; UBS economists expected buyer sentiment to stabilise.

proposed changes have, rightfully, had a major and tangible impact on buyer confidence.”

The Property Investment Professionals of Australia also celebrated the news that the risk to negative gearing was gone. Chairman Peter Koulizos said it had always been a poor proposal, but even more so in the under-

“Our industry needs to prove the current [remuneration] model is most appropriate for all stakeholders ... Now is the time to step up” Jeremy Fisher, 1st Street Financial RiskWise Property Research CEO Doron Peleg said fears of a Labor win had had a major impact on buyer sentiment, particularly among investors, who saw residential properties as depreciating assets. Labor’s loss had eliminated the “number one risk to the property market”, he said. “What we saw happening was the

whelming property environment.

“Creating an us and them campaign by classifying all landlords as ‘greedy’ also did the Opposition no favours when the vast majority of property investors only own one property and are just trying to improve their financial futures,” he said.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

08-09_News_Analysis_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 8

3/06/2019 6:52:31 AM

LIBERAL VS LABOR ON TRAIL COMMISSIONS In his final report, Commissioner Hayne recommended that the borrower and not the lender should pay the mortgage broker a fee for acting in connection with home lending.

He said the changes should be made over a period of two or three years, by ending trail commissions first and then later other commissions.

Before the report was released, Labor announced it would be accepting the recommendations in full, but in the weeks following it said it would only remove trail from July 2020. Its plan for upfront commission was to introduce a 1.1% fixed fee based on the amount of the loan drawn down.

The Liberal party had originally planned to remove trail from July 2020 but later backtracked and said it would instead hold a consultation on all broker commission payments in three years’ time.

First home buyer scheme The Coalition government announced ahead of the election that it would be introducing a new first home buyer scheme. The initiative could see first home buyers only needing to save a 5% deposit rather the usual 20%.

While some have criticised the plan as

Banking Association CEO Michael Lawrence.

In particular, COBA welcomed the Prime Minister’s comments about the scheme giving preference to smaller banks.

“Australia’s credit unions, mutual banks and building societies have provided loans for millions of Australians buying their first home.

“The proposed [FHB] scheme is a positive for mortgage brokers who can competently guide the first home buyer through a range of alternatives” Matt Lawler, Loan Market being ineffective, others in the banking and broking industry have praised it.

As buying a first home “is a rite of passage for many Australians”, and saving for a deposit can be difficult, the scheme will make it easier for many Australians to enter the property market sooner, according to Customer Owned

By preferencing smaller banks, the Prime Minister is acknowledging that Australians should look beyond the big four,” Lawrence said.

Broker group Loan Market labelled the announcement a “terrific initiative”.

Executive director Matt Lawler added, “It is generous, albeit capped to a certain

number each calendar year.”

Only 10,000 borrowers each year would be eligible for the reduced deposit rate.

“FHBs have been the sector that has found it most difficult to enter the property market in recent times. Property prices have come off in the last 12 to 18 months but are still high by historical standards,” Lawler said.

“The proposed scheme in a Liberal government context [will] be a positive boost to a lagging property market suffering from declining values, tightening credit available to would-be purchasers and negative sentiment from the Labor government’s proposal to eradicate negative gearing for existing properties.”

He also said the scheme would positively impact mortgage brokers.

“FHBs are more likely to turn to mortgage brokers for advice than going directly to the bank or alternative lender, so the proposed scheme is a positive for mortgage brokers who can competently guide the first home buyer through a range of alternatives to get them the best possible outcome.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

08-09_News_Analysis_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 9

9

3/06/2019 6:52:42 AM

UPFRONT

OPINION

GOT AN OPINION THAT COUNTS? Email rebecca.pike@keymedia.com

An election post-mortem Now that we know the results of the federal election, brokers have more certainty about the future of the industry. But there are lessons to learn from the events of the last year, writes Tim Brown WHAT A difference a week makes. From near disaster for the mortgage broking industry to almost business as usual. While we are not completely out of the woods, the future certainly looks brighter under a Coalition government.

I spoke to a number of brokers after the recommendations of the banking royal commission were published, and it was evident that few had thought the commission would recommend the banning of trails, let alone reducing upfronts. So what were the lessons learnt from this ‘near death’ experience: • When our backs were to the wall we responded as one unified group with a common cause. In my time in the industry I have never seen this happen before.

The industry response was phenomenal; even financial planners I spoke to wondered why their industry bodies hadn’t responded with the same gusto when their remuneration was threatened.

• We can’t be complacent with either side of politics and need to maintain relationships with both parties moving forward. The MFAA, with the help of the major aggregators, now funds a full-time lobbyist in Canberra to ensure we are in front of the right people when decisions are being taken in relation to our industry. This is the best investment we have ever made.

• As an industry we can never stop selling the services we provide. Broker market share does not grow if brokers are not doing the right thing by their clients, so it was difficult to understand that the royal commission

10

did not ask for an industry representative to speak on behalf of brokers. How could it make conclusions without all the facts?

• It is in everybody’s interest to call out bad behaviour. At the royal commission there were examples of a small minority who did the wrong thing by their clients. We cannot turn a blind eye to this sort of behaviour and must call it out when we know it’s happening. We need to uphold the highest standards to maintain our reputation.

last two decades, you will always come under scrutiny from competitors and regulators. Diversification does not mean just selling insurance (although when trail was removed in New Zealand most mortgage brokers became advisers and started selling life and risk). For me, commercial is still the biggest opportunity in the market and the one most underserviced by the banks. The settlement volumes are twice those of residential, and a number of fintechs are now targeting small businesses with invoice factoring and cash flow lending.

• When I was at Macquarie we had a saying: you need to get off the dance floor and look out from the balcony. The world is changing so quickly, and there are endless opportunities presenting themselves daily for small businesses. As a small business you have an obligation to constantly educate yourself on new innovations. Industry bodies do a great job of putting on events with speakers who can share with you some of these new and exciting innovations in the finance and property market. There are also a number of industry publications that can share with

The industry response was phenomenal. Even financial planners I spoke to wondered why their industry bodies hadn’t responded with the same gusto when their remuneration was threatened • We must support the banks that supported us in our time of need. A number of banks came out to support the role brokers play in keeping the market competitive. Where possible, the industry should support these lenders as our way of acknowledging their ongoing commitment to our industry.

• Get comfortable with new technologies; they can make you much more efficient and help with compliance. You don’t get paid to be good at admin; automate or outsource where practical.

• Diversify, diversify, diversify. I don’t know how many times I have stood up in front of brokers and told them you cannot rely on the current level of remuneration. When an industry flourishes, as broking has over the

you the latest and greatest in your industry.

But learn from others as well. I have often said that some of the best ideas I have ever implemented were someone else’s.

• Lastly, have an exit strategy. Consolidation is inevitable, especially with the ever-growing demands of compliance and regulation.

Don’t wait for someone to force you down a path with little or no choice. Get on the front foot and determine your own destiny.

Tim Brown is the head of financial services at Lakeba Group and CEO of Ezifin. He was formerly chairman of the MFAA and CEO of Vow Financial.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

10-11_Opinion_SUBBED.indd 10

3/06/2019 11:22:37 AM

10-11_Opinion_SUBBED.indd 11

3/06/2019 11:22:40 AM

PEOPLE

BIG INTERVIEW

NOAH BRESLOW: BACKING SMALL BUSINESS Helping SMEs access funding is something OnDeck has done since its inception in the US more than a decade ago. Now, as Australia’s mainstream banks have tightened their appetite for these businesses, there is a bigger need for alternative lenders than ever AT THE second annual OnDeck Australia AltFi conference, the online lender’s global CEO, Noah Breslow, explained how he went from a background in technology to a “crash course” in financial services to leading the pioneering firm.

The fintech was launched in Australia in 2015, having already expanded from its base in the US to Canada. Breslow says that at the time he thought the natural progression would have been to expand to the UK, but OnDeck’s research showed that Australia had a growing need for an alternative small business lender.

Breslow studied computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before working at a number of venture capital-backed software companies. After he sold his last software company in 2006, one of the investors put him in touch with OnDeck’s founder, Mitch Jacobs, who he met with in 2007.

He became OnDeck’s first employee.

“What I loved about it was a couple of things,” Breslow says. “One, that technology

12

could create an experience that was dramatically better than what was happening out there. Two, that customers needed the product. Every small business needs capital to grow, and so it wasn’t a ‘nice to have’

“That which didn’t kill us made us stronger,” Breslow says.

In 2012, Breslow became the global CEO and within the year had hired a consultant to research different markets around the world.

“Every small business needs capital to grow, and so it wasn’t a ‘nice to have’ product for small businesses, it was a ‘must have’ product” product for small businesses, it was a ‘must have’ product.”

A year later, the GFC hit and set OnDeck back about 18 months in its development.

The fintech was lending to businesses deemed too risky for the banks, and it had not had a chance to build up a lot of capital.

But Breslow says the company learnt a lot about running the business in a variety of different conditions, and this allowed OnDeck to grow without competition while the banks were dealing with regulators and cleaning up the mess.

Small business owners applied for loans in these various markets and documented their experiences. In Australia, it took 44 days to get financing from one of the big banks.

Several entrepreneurs – including current Australia CEO Cameron Poolman – plus a number of investors contacted OnDeck to get the lender up and running. OnDeck Australia launched in November 2015 and has continued to grow ever since. “It wasn’t on our plan originally, but we knew the pain point was here, and we said let’s go for it. And we got it running very quickly,” Breslow says.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

12-15_Big_Interview_SUBBED.indd 12

3/06/2019 6:59:04 AM

PROFILE Name: Noah Breslow Company: OnDeck Title: Global CEO Years in the industry: 12, but 22 in technology/fintech Career highlight: “Becoming CEO of OnDeck in 2012!”

Career lowlight: “Having to lay off staff in 2017. It was necessary to get to profitability, but a very difficult decision and process”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

12-15_Big_Interview_SUBBED.indd 13

13

3/06/2019 6:59:31 AM

PEOPLE

BIG INTERVIEW

Surviving the stampede Over the past 12 to 18 months the small business lending space has grown massively as businesses are finding it harder to get finance and the bigger banks have changed their appetite for who they lend to.

The emergence of new online small business lenders is not unique to Australia, and it is certainly not the first time OnDeck has seen it happen. But after this “stampede” of new online SME lenders, as Breslow calls it, comes the “shakeout”.

In the US, the market is starting to see the number of online lenders shrink back from the original stampede, so the market will be left with the strongest players.

As Australia continues to see new entrants, OnDeck is looking at the ways it can carry on educating and supporting brokers. Breslow

tries to submit an application that another broker has already submitted, OnDeck will protect the original broker.

Brokers can also remain secure in the knowledge that OnDeck Australia is backed up by OnDeck US, which has loaned US$10bn to small businesses.

“I think that provides some assurance that we’re here to stay,” he says. “We’re not interested in the short game; we’re interested in the long game. We’re not interested in the transaction; we’re interested in the relationship.”

New products Last year, OnDeck Australia expanded into equipment finance. Through its research and discussions with brokers and customers, it found a gap in the current market.

OnDeck identified that nearly a third of its

“We’re not interested in the short game; we’re interested in the long game. We’re not interested in the transaction; we’re interested in the relationship” says efficiency and trust are the areas he has really focused on in the past year.

“Brokers are small businesses themselves; they don’t have tons of staff, so the more efficient you can make them the better,” he says. “They don’t want to go on a wild-goose chase and submit an application that’s going to be declined.”

OnDeck has refocused its sales team on talking brokers through scenarios, and has provided brokers with the tools and a portal to make the process as smooth as possible.

Trust is the other factor. In order to maintain a broker’s trust, Breslow says OnDeck is committed to channel protection.

If a broker submits an application and the customer finds OnDeck online a week later and submits their own application, the lender will protect the broker’s application. If a broker

14

existing customers were using its unsecured loan product to purchase equipment.

“The light bulb went off over our heads collectively,” Breslow says.

“Rather than offer this customer an unsecured term loan, we decided to build a fit-for-purpose equipment loan that matched the usage period of their equipment, using the asset as security.”

This new product allows small business owners to better manage their cash flow across the lifetime of the asset. It will also give OnDeck’s broker partners another great option for servicing their customers’ needs.

In the US, the online lender also has a good relationship with brokers. Its funder adviser channel is one of the earliest things it set up in the business.

Equipment finance brokers were the first

GROWTH OF ONDECK

2007 OnDeck Capital Inc. founded

2014 US$1bn loaned to small businesses

2015 US$3bn loaned to small businesses 2015 Launched in Australia

2016 US$6bn loaned globally to small businesses

2018 US$10bn loaned globally to small businesses

to offer OnDeck products, and then post-GFC mortgage brokers began to diversify.

Brokers for Australia’s business will continue to be a main focus of the lender, and as it expands into new areas it will ensure the broker channel remains educated and supported so it can reach those businesses.

“Relying on distribution partners who have those existing relationships is critical, and we acknowledge that,” Breslow says. “There’s a reason why a lot of products sold to small businesses are sold through brokers.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

12-15_Big_Interview_SUBBED.indd 14

3/06/2019 7:00:16 AM

12-15_Big_Interview_SUBBED.indd 15

3/06/2019 6:58:48 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE 2019

2019

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE

Eight major aggregators gathered for a live-streamed panel discussion in which they talked about the impact of the royal commission going forward, and the work they had been doing with the industry, as well as other crucial topics such as technology and diversification

16

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 16

3/06/2019 7:05:26 AM

THE FIGHT for the broking industry would not have been so successful had it not been for the combination of both public and private campaigning. While the TV ads, social media campaigns, petitions and interviews reached out to consumers for their support, industry associations and broker groups were also in meetings behind closed doors, educating government representatives and legislators on the importance of brokers.

The aggregators who took part in MPA’s live-streamed aggregator panel worked tirelessly in the campaign, whether in the background, out in front, or both.

While the federal election was to be held the day after the panel – meaning we could not discuss with any certainty what the broker industry might be facing – it provided an opportunity to explain to brokers watching live how these groups would continue to have those discussions no matter which party was elected. As one panellist said, the election result wouldn’t mean it would stop there.

Eight aggregators took part on the day – AFG, Choice, Connective, FAST, Outsource Financial, PLAN Australia, Specialist Finance Group and Vow Financial. Clive Kirkpatrick from Vow made it just in time for the cameras to go live after a heroic dash across the city, which is why he is not included in the group photo.

The eight panellists had a very lively conversation about what the future might look like, as well as the work they had been doing with new-to-industry brokers

and those considering diversifying.

As is often a controversial subject, the discussion of bank ownership of aggregators sparked a great deal of debate. Tanya Sale, CEO of Outsource Financial, kicked it off by saying, “This is one of my favourite subjects.”

The aggregators also received some great questions from brokers watching live, including on the topic of clawback and what the Combined Industry Forum would do going forward in terms of standardising the adoption of commissions calculated net of offset.

One of those broker questions was, “Given the inconsistency across lenders with the adoption of commission calculated ‘net of offset’, broker sentiment is that we have been short-changed. Will the CIF or aggregators push for standard regular reviews of loan accounts and top up commissions applying where drawdown has occurred?”

This opened up a great discussion in which Mark Haron, director of Connective and deputy chairman of the CIF, admitted it had been disappointing that not all banks had adopted the recommendations as intended.

More on that question will be covered in the following pages, alongside other important topics, which will hopefully give you a better insight into what your aggregator is doing and where they stand.

You can watch the discussion in full on our website at mpamagazine.com.au/tv.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 17

17

3/06/2019 7:05:33 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE 2019 THE PANELLISTS

Anja Pannek CEO, PLAN Australia

Blake Buchanan Aggregation, acquisition and strategy, Specialist Finance Group

Clive Kirkpatrick General manager, Vow Financial

Mark Haron Director, Connective

Mark Hewitt General manager, residential and broker, AFG

Stephen Moore CEO, Choice Aggregation Services

18

Simon Southwell Head of Southern region, FAST

Tanya Sale CEO, Outsource Financial

While it wasn’t one of Hayne’s recommendations, greater disclosure of aggregator ownership is something the industry has been working towards. What have you done to make sure your brokers are being transparent, and why is it important?

The topic of aggregator ownership is one many expected to be raised in the royal commission’s final report, and although it was not, there is still an ongoing discussion in the industry about the impact it has and how ownership is made clear to customers.

This is an area that the Combined Industry Forum included in its reform package, to address ASIC’s proposal that there should be clearer disclosure of ownership structures within the home loan market to improve competition.

The aggregators in the live panel discussion had differing views on the benefits of being bank-owned, but all were making sure their customers knew exactly where they stood.

Tanya Sale, CEO of Outsource Financial, spoke first, saying it was one of her favourite topics. “It’s actually quite easy for us being independently owned, and passionately independently owned,” she said.

Outsource brokers have had documentation clearly stating the group’s independence for years, Sale said, not just in the last 12 months because of Hayne’s scrutiny.

“On documentation that our members use, they can easily slot in about the independence or the ownership side – that we’re not aligned to any lender or dealer group, wealth group, anything like that.

So, for us it’s quite easily completed and has been for years.”

For NAB-owned aggregator Choice, transparency of ownership has always been fundamental to everything the group does, according to CEO Stephen Moore.

“What we know is that transparency is key to trust, and trust is the most fundamental thing that we need to continue to have in the broker market for our success, but equally across financial services more broadly,” Moore said.

He added that Choice was a “better business today because of NAB’s ownership”, saying the group would not otherwise have been able to invest at the level it had or to attract the same level of talent.

“The net result is we can provide better services to brokers because of that ownership,” Moore said. “We’re a long way down the path of being transparent around ownership; many of our brokers have already been doing that over many years.”

After rolling out the CIF’s recommendations on ownership disclosure, Moore said there had not been one negative comment from customers.

When asked how aggregators were able to keep track of this and how their brokers were

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 18

3/06/2019 7:06:36 AM

BROKER QUESTION Given the inconsistency across lenders with the adoption of commission calculated ‘net of offset’, broker sentiment is that we have been shortchanged. Will the CIF or aggregators push for standard regular reviews of loan accounts and top up commissions applying where drawdown has occurred?

Q

“We really need to free up time for people to have that quality discussion [with the customer], and the biggest inhibitor to that is the gathering of the paperwork” Mark Hewitt, AFG being transparent about ownership, Mark Haron, director at Connective and deputy chair of the CIF, said the forum’s reforms had outlined the requirements. These included disclosure in advertising and on websites, but also in the credit disclosure documentation brokers give customers, in which they disclose the panel of lenders, the commissions they receive and their ownership structure.

“It’s fairly easy to map and track back to that particular document,” Haron said. “And that’s a requirement put on us as an industry.

It’s not been forced on us, but it’s one that we chose to accept and adopt because we know it’s the right thing to do, and again it pushes the industry to better customer outcomes and best interest duties.”

Speaking on behalf of another indepen-

Haron: “It’s very disappointing the outcome of that. Unfortunately, from a CIF perspective we could not specify the standard structure of how net of offset and utilisation and calculation of the upfront model should apply.

It was certainly part of the CIF recommendations that additional and further payments would be made as funds were drawn down, and unfortunately not all banks have adopted that. We are having discussions with those lenders, and I know all aggregators are having those discussions to say, ‘lift your game, you’ve created a lender choice conflict’.”

Kirkpatrick: “Because of the multitude of different calculations it actually pushes a bit of cost back into the aggregator, because in the commissions processing areas, obviously you’ve got 20–25 lenders providing different spreadsheets with different calculations, so it’s affecting our ability to efficiently push through the commissions to the brokers as well. So, as Mark Haron said, we’re pretty disappointed in the way that came about.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 19

19

3/06/2019 7:06:04 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE 2019

dently owned aggregator, Blake Buchanan, aggregation, acquisition and strategy at Specialist Finance Group, said he would like to see further transparency of bankowned aggregators, possibly with a new conflict document to ensure that customers fully understand.

“As a business it would be great to have that investment as an aggregator, but we don’t require it,” he said. “We deployed new systems last year; we’re probably pound for pound the fastest-growing aggregator; we take pride in our support metric, and the economy of it is all pretty comparable.

“We’re able to do that without bank ownership, so I would like to see more disclosures in place and not just a line on a needs analysis saying, ‘Were you aware we’re owned by a bank?’”

With respect to these extra disclosure practices, Simon Southwell, head of Southern region at FAST, said the aggregator had already implemented documents that showed it was owned by NAB and listed its top six lenders to demonstrate its flow.

“I find personally that one of the most offensive questions I could ask one of our brokers is, ‘Does the fact that your aggregator is owned by a bank influence your recommendation?’ They don’t respond well

20

to that question, so I think we’ve done really well as an industry,” he said.

What are brokers asking for when it comes to tech changes, and how are you staying agile?

Technology is continuing to develop, and the bigger players are now having to compete with the smaller and more nimble fintechs that are breaking through. As borrowers and brokers are now expecting things to be done faster, aggregators are also having to improve their technological offerings.

PLAN CEO Anja Pannek said her company had just embarked on a relaunch of its platform after about a year and a half of planning and design.

“Often when we think about technology, at the heart of it is how do you engage with your customers and how does it make it easier for you as a broker to do business?” she said.

Working with Salesforce, for example, would enable brokers to bring their customers mobile-first into the journey, Pannek said.

But individual digital plans are not the only thing the industry needs to consider.

Pannek said the introduction of open banking would be a “game changer”.

“The broking proposition is really going to

be amplified when open banking comes to life,” she said. “You’ve already got the trust factor, which a lot of us have spoken about, and brokers working with their customers.

Customers will be able to get faster decisions, greater guidance when sharing their information straight up. So I think that’s also something that, as we look forward to 2020 and beyond, will play a very big part.”

Mark Hewitt, general manager, residential and broker, at AFG, said that in retooling AFG’s digital platform the aggregator had gone back to the broker and the customer to focus on the purpose of the technology.

“At the end of the day it’s an enabler. It’s not the business,” he said.

AFG found the three things brokers wanted to be able to do were to grow their businesses, hire more staff, and have more time for quality conversations with customers.

“We really need to free up time for people to have that quality discussion, and the biggest inhibitor to that is the gathering of the paperwork, the employment letters, the income letters, getting that into the system; that takes an inordinate amount of time backwards and forwards,” he said.

“So, we’re working on a system that brings this to the front of the customers.”

Haron agreed that it was about enabling the broker’s business. He said that while some customers were really happy to be using technology, others still wanted that face-toface conversation.

Connective has developed its platform, Mercury, so that the broker can use it flexibly, based on how they want to use it within their business, and also on the customer experience they are looking to deliver.

“Behind it all sits the person, sits the relationship, and if the customer wants to do most of the transaction digitally, they’ll be able to do that,” Haron explained.

“But when and where they need to have that good customer dialogue face-to-face, that’s a key part of that broker proposition.

I think that’s why brokers will always be strong and why customers are not racing down the digital path.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 20

3/06/2019 7:06:49 AM

T c

L 2

T C f

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 21

3/06/2019 7:09:36 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE 2019

BROKER QUESTION What will you be doing to work with the party that wins the election?

Q

At the time of the discussion the results of the election were still not known. However, the responses of the panellists provided a more general overview of the work aggregators would be doing to continue their fight for the industry.

Kirkpatrick: “The amount of work brokers have put into educating their local members has changed opinions in [the political parties]. We as a group here will continue to work on whichever party is in power and Treasury to get them to understand even better why this model is important and the broking industry is important to the economy.”

Pannek: “There has been a definite shift, and we’ve seen it because of the activity of industry participants, so we’ve got to take heart and continue to have that open dialogue with Treasury, with the government that’s elected. It’s also really important that we stay together as an industry and work together.”

Hewitt: “Mark [Haron] and I have been doing a series of town hall events around the country with politicians, and some of the stories we heard there about outcomes that brokers were able to drive for customers – they talked about three or four visits to a bank direct, not getting anywhere, about to be booted out of their house, and mortgage brokers were able to achieve, in their eyes, miracles for them.”

22

“We’ll start to get clarity on commissions, but there are many other things around how our industry is going to shape up, and how our customers and brokers will behave” Anja Pannek, PLAN Turning back to open banking, Haron said it was an area the industry had to work on to make sure brokers benefited from as much access to information as the banks. At the moment it is not clear how it would work, but Haron said ideally there would be an open banking platform with brokers, aggregators and lenders each having their own keys and being able to access the same information.

“I know the MFAA’s done a bit of work on that in the last two weeks to ensure the broker industry has as much access to the open banking platform as the banks,” Haron said.

“That’s the thing we’ll be working really hard on from an industry perspective, to ensure it’s not just a bank open banking platform, it’s for all.”

How are you working with brokers who want to diversify, and is it something you are encouraging?

Particularly over the last year, diversification has been a big talking point, as brokers have been encouraged to look for additional revenue streams due to falling house prices and loan volumes as well as the threat to commissions.

Aggregators have been educating brokers on diversifying for a long time, however, and as AFG’s Mark Hewitt said, it has almost become an industry buzzword. Despite that, AFG has not overlooked its importance.

Hewitt said commercial and asset finance was a “great opportunity” for brokers, especially when around 25% of their home

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 22

3/06/2019 7:07:38 AM

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 23

3/06/2019 7:09:45 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE 2019

loan borrowers were small businesses, and those borrowers had already built trust in these brokers.

He said it was not always easy though.

“Traditionally it’s been very hard for brokers to access commercial finance. There’ve been barriers in relation to accreditation; hurdles they’ve needed to cross.

“So, what we’ve done is we’ve designed the AFG business platform. It’s an intuitive system that matches the client’s needs with a lender’s risk appetite and helps brokers make the progression from being a residential home loan lender into a commercial lender.”

Agreeing with Hewitt about borrower trust, Vow Financial’s general manager of lending, Clive Kirkpatrick, said that was the reason borrowers chose to use brokers.

He said it was why, for a broker, diversification was not just about income streams but about fulfilling more of their customers’ needs because they had put their trust in them.

“It’s around customer need, it’s around trust, it’s around diversification of income stream, but it’s also around customer outcome and fulfilling more of their needs” Clive Kirkpatrick, Vow Financial “If you don’t fulfil those needs, someone else will, and they’ll be working to take the home loan away from you,” he said. “So it’s

BROKER QUESTION Clawback is a critical issue. A two-year period with 100% clawback would not work for our industry. What is being done behind the scenes to address this issue?

Q

While it looks like trail commissions are safe for now, the industry is continuing to work through these issues ahead of the consultation in three years’ time.

Sale: “First we had to save the industry; second, when we did, we had to save the commission side. Clawback is one of the next things that we really have to sit down with the parties and the lenders to discuss. If they’re going to remove trail … it becomes an issue for when a writer has only written one or two loans, gets clawback and has no trail; how are we going to get the money from that writer?”

Hewitt: “At the moment, only half the remuneration is subject to clawback; the trail’s not subject to clawback. So, what we’re talking about here potentially is all the remuneration being subject to clawback, which is not tenable.”

Moore: “We’ve got some time to go on this, so we need to be moderate in how we think about it, but I’d put all lenders on notice … There’s going to be far more expected of lenders by brokers and aggregators in the next period. We want lenders to really step up.”

Southwell: “Clawback has definitely played a role in all of the reviews we’ve been part of …

At the moment, if we did have a large upfront with a full clawback, it’s not aligned. The big steps that happen at the moment in my mind don’t really reflect. If it is intended to be from a lender perspective [in terms of] recovery of distribution costs, then that doesn’t happen in big steps; it should happen on a more linear basis to make sure our interests are all aligned, which leads to greater customer outcomes.”

24

around customer need, it’s around trust, it’s around diversification of income stream, but it’s also around customer outcome and fulfilling more of their needs.”

FAST’s Southwell said diversification had been a focus for the aggregator for the last seven years. This had led to around 60% of its brokers meeting more than one customer need on a regular basis.

“We’re all talking about what’s going on in your business at the moment. Diversification of revenue streams is important, but if you take it back to a consumer perspective, meeting more needs of your client, deepening that relationship with your client, is more critical than ever,” he said.

FAST has focused on building the capability of its partnership managers to support brokers in their diversification strategies, whether they are residential brokers looking to get into business or equipment finance, or the other way around.

“This is not just about mortgage brokers becoming commercial brokers; it’s also about helping commercial brokers meet the home lending needs,” Southwell added.

We’ve seen a number of lenders pull back from areas of lending such as SMSF and reverse mortgages.

What are you doing to keep on top of these changes and ensure your brokers have a diverse lender panel to support a wide range of client needs?

The bigger banks have changed their appetites; they have either completely pulled products in certain areas or restricted lending in others. The overwhelming response to this

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 24

3/06/2019 7:10:09 AM

question was that lenders pulling back was creating new opportunities.

Sale said the industry had seen more players coming into the market to fill those gaps, particularly in terms of small business lending. “I think this is a great time for our industry, to tell you the truth. We’re seeing more and more funders come into play, which brings the competitive streak out there.”

As for how Outsource is helping its brokers keep on top of the changes, Sale said, “Education is empowerment. We as aggregators have to have systems and processes.

Outsource has just created ieducate, which provides business coaching clinics, etc., for our members to actually grow and evolve.”

Moore agreed about the opportunities for alternative lenders entering the market, but he said Choice had found it was having to say no to certain new, niche players wanting to join its lender panel.

“That’s just a reality, because when we put a lender on our panel we’re putting our reputation on the line, just as a broker is when they’re recommending too,” he said. “There’s a bit of a shift where for some lenders it’s almost an expectation; it’s a right to be on an aggregator panel. It’s not; you need to earn that right and meet minimum standards.”

Not expecting these lenders to stay out of these markets forever, Buchanan referred to finance as a “big wheel” turning, depending on appetite. “When we see some providers pull out of a segment, it wouldn’t be unusual to see them come back in at some point in time.”

Buchanan referred to lenders specialising in the reverse mortgage space, in which they could really capitalise on the fact that big players were leaving the market, but he said he didn’t expect this to last forever.

“Down the track, as more people get more appetite for that, I wouldn’t be surprised if they deployed those reverse mortgage products again,” he said.

Kirkpatrick reiterated that it was about fulfilling customers’ needs and remembering that while some of these lenders may be in it for the short term, customer relationships were for the long term.

From an aggregator’s perspective, his message was clear: “Every lender has the right to decide if they want to be in a market or not be in a market. So we have to find the right providers to help brokers satisfy the needs of their customers.”

He admitted he had some bias on topics like this, and he gave the example of his mother.

If she wanted to buy a car or visit family in Queensland but didn’t have the money, he and his brother would help her through that.

But again, there’s a customer element there. “There’s a need – but the provider of the lending, the provider of the advice, and the families need to be engaged in that decisionmaking,” Kirkpatrick said.

What is the ‘customer first’ duty?

The Combined Industry Forum included in its reforms that it would develop a ‘customer first’ duty, and this has been a talking point for some time. In Commissioner Kenneth Hayne’s final report, he recommended a ‘best interest’ duty, and questions have arisen as to how those terms differ and what these duties would look like.

Having worked hard with the CIF on this subject, Pannek took on this question first.

She said the proposal for a best interest duty was something that collectively as an industry they needed to work through. While the CIF had a definition of customer first duty, she

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 25

25

3/06/2019 7:10:20 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

AGGREGATORS ROUNDTABLE 2019

said the industry needed to engage in discussion about what the best interest duty would involve.

“We’ve got to be very careful when it comes to best interest duty,” Pannek said.

“We’re talking about a shift, a regulatory shift, in how a broker works with their customer. Often, and understandably, we’ll look at financial planning. We’ve got to learn from other regulatory regimes about how to implement this in a way that works for customers.”

One of the questions Pannek posed was around how brokers would demonstrate a best interest duty, because it was not just a “tick-a-box exercise”.

She said, “You question if getting a loan is necessarily putting a customer in a better position. So you’ve really got to think about that, about how you actually demonstrate you’ve achieved best interest duty.”

26

Hewitt added that this had to be something that was considered at the time the loan was taken out, “because no one can predict the future”.

there are many other things around how our industry is going to shape up, and how our customers and brokers will behave and work together. This is one of them in and

“Transparency is key to trust, and trust is the most fundamental thing that we need to continue to have in the broker market” Stephen Moore, Choice Pannek elaborated: “We think about the work we’ve done around customer first duty; it’s appropriate, it’s affordable, it’s compliant, at the time the advice and the recommendation are given.

“The circumstances that a borrower is in can change over time. So I’d encourage everyone to engage on this topic. I think we’ll start to get clarity on commissions, but

around best interest duty.”

As another CIF member, Moore said the industry was trying to avoid unintended consequences by working on the definition.

He added, “But it shouldn’t detract from what we know brokers do today. Brokers absolutely focus on providing the best outcomes for customers, and our message to brokers is just to keep doing that.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 26

3/06/2019 7:10:51 AM

16-26_Aggregators Roundtable_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 27

3/06/2019 7:11:00 AM

FEATURES

ALT-DOC LOANS

An alternative solution Self-employed borrowers are almost becoming the new normal, but banks are not servicing their needs when it comes to finance. Thankfully, there are alternatives out there that see it as an important market

DESPITE THE fact that there are thousands of self-employed business owners and the gig economy continues to grow, many banks still require payslips to assess a customer’s income before they approve a loan. Previously referred to as low-doc loans, alternativedocumentation – or alt-doc – loans allow these borrowers to prove their creditworthiness.

In most cases, they are just as creditworthy as a PAYG employee; their documents are just different.

While these borrowers might not be able to go to a mainstream bank, there are other lenders that can offer a solution, and it is vital that brokers know the options they can present to their customers. They could be looking for a variety of loans, including home loans or business loans.

Many business owners will also not be able to produce their most recent tax returns.

Instead, alternative lenders can look at documents such as business bank statements, business activity statements and letters from their accountants.

With alt-doc loans, the lender will usually spend a bit more time getting to know the business. In the past, when it was referred to as low-doc, there was a preconception that there would be minimal verification, and this sent the wrong message.

Contrary to popular belief, says Bluestone head of sales and marketing Royden D’Vaz, looking at these alternative documents actually tells the lender more about the customer.

“From a due diligence point of view, it actually tells us more about their business, more about their individual characteristics and what their business acumen is like,” he says. “It also shows us the patterns of expenditure and how often the income comes in.”

Solutions for an evolving economy At La Trobe, the average alt-doc borrower is self-employed, with an annual turnover

28

www.mpamagazine.com.au

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 28

3/06/2019 7:13:01 AM

PEPPER’S TAKE How is Pepper helping brokers with alt-doc?

Aaron Milburn, Pepper: Our famous Pepper Product Selector identifies a specific home loan product, interest rate and fees, and provides an indicative offer (where applicable) for any client in less than two minutes – even when a customer may not fit the criteria of a traditional bank loan. And our five-step process helps the broker successfully position an alternative home loan with a customer who may not have been expecting this type of solution.

of between $50,000 and $2m. They may be unable to produce their most recent financial statements, or they may have a complex corporate structure in place that requires significant time for a credit analyst to understand.

Cory Bannister, La Trobe’s vice president and chief lending officer, says time is something that self-employed applicants don’t have.

While the typical alt-doc borrower may be a business owner, the working world has changed, and having a full-time job with payslips is not the only way to make money.

Bannister says, “We are seeing the emergence of new economies, such as the ‘gig’ and ‘freelance’ economies, along with the continued rise of the e-commerce industry, all creating a greater need for specialist lending solutions due to the temporary and transient nature of their employment and the self-employed nature of these businesses.”

Daniel Carde, general manager of third party distribution at Resimac, says alt-doc loans can be an ideal solution for borrowers with less than two years’ self-employed history, who usually do not meet the income verification requirements of most fulldocumentation policies.

There are still responsible lending obligations for alternative lenders offering

alt-doc loans. An alt-doc borrower must have been self-employed for at least six months.

But even when the borrower has been selfemployed for more than two years, they might face problems getting funding from mainstream banks.

“You will also see borrowers with over two years’ self-employment history where, for various reasons, current taxation returns are not available or the historical taxation returns are not representative of their current trading conditions,” Carde says.

“Another borrower type is those with complex financial structures where an alt-doc loan often provides the best solution.”

With more people finding it difficult to get funding as the banks tighten credit, and the growing rate of casual working, Carde says Resimac has seen more and more enquiries from these borrowers.

Flexible but compliant As in many areas of lending, the appetite for alt-doc loans has tightened, and certain groups have pulled out altogether. This provides an important role for brokers to play when borrowers come to them for an alternative solution.

Pepper’s head of third party, Aaron Milburn, says he has seen an increase in the number of alt-doc enquiries for the lender’s home loan products.

“Our individual assessment of loans and risk-based pricing enables us to be more flexible with our credit policy than other lenders” Aaron Milburn, Pepper

“We don’t think it’s going to go backwards any time soon,” he adds.

With the number of banks pulling back, it is easy to ask whether this is a risky product to be offering. The alternative lenders vehemently disagree with that.

Milburn says, “Our individual assessment of loans and risk-based pricing enable us to be more flexible with our credit policy than other lenders. This flexibility does not make us non-compliant.”

For Pepper, an alt-doc customer is anyone who earns income differently. As well as business owners or casual workers, it could

www.mpamagazine.com.au

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 29

29

3/06/2019 7:13:10 AM

FEATURES

ALT-DOC LOANS

“While there might have been some reluctance in the past, I think as brokers become educated they realise you’re getting to know the business better” Royden D’Vaz, Bluestone

be a property investor earning rental income from their portfolio.

Each application still needs to satisfy Pepper’s normal credit assessment. It must be proven that it will genuinely meet the customer’s needs, and they still need to demonstrate that they can afford the repayments.

“A broker’s client still has to prove they can repay their loan, and we still have to verify their income. The majority of our credit assessment is the same as the banks – we simply have an appetite and flexibility to cater for a broader range of clients,” Milburn says.

John Mohnacheff, national sales manager at Liberty Group, says lenders pulling out of the space just creates more opportunities for others. But he finds that brokers still have a preconception that alternative documentation means it is harder to get a loan.

“It doesn’t mean you’re not eligible for a loan,” he says. “If there are lots of ways of earning an income, there are lots of ways of assessing an income.”

According to Mohnacheff, the rules of engagement for brokers are fairly simple.

They need not be worried about taking on alt-doc loans, because it is up to the lender to clearly set out what criteria it requires.

At Liberty’s training sessions it often gives scenarios to brokers and asks them

BLUESTONE’S TAKE What do brokers need to look out for?

Royden D’Vaz, Bluestone: If there’s been no income for the last six months, or if they don’t have business bank statements, that’s a flag. What is going on? Why haven’t they put money through the bank?

The other flags are a continuous certain expense to a certain person or a certain institution – they’re flags. It should raise a flag and you should investigate it.

That’s the good thing. Tax returns don’t tell you that, whereas bank statements tell you the patterns of behaviour.

30

whether the hypothetical customer could get finance. “A lot of people say no,” Mohnacheff says. “But we always encourage brokers to go through and understand the customer’s whole situation.”

Taking it as fact that all lenders must meet NCCP and responsible lending requirements, it is up to the lender to determine the basis on which they assess the borrower. Some lenders may ask for six months’ worth of statements, some for 12 months’, others for an accountant’s letter, and some for a combination.

“Not one size fits ever ybody,” Mohnacheff says. “It depends on the unique circumstances of the individual. Let’s say you’re a seasonal worker; there are going to be months when you’re earning lots of money and months when you’re not. It’s up to the lender to say, ‘We understand the situation here and have assessed to our criteria, and this loan fits with this person’s financial objectives’.”

At Bluestone the need for this offering is clear. D’Vaz says that while there has not been a huge spike in the number of alt-doc loans, the product makes up more than 50% of its business. Interestingly, the group is seeing an increase in full-doc loans as banks tighten their lending criteria and brokers find borrowers who would have easily qualified for a loan in the past are failing the new lending guidelines.

Empowering brokers with education A clear trend Bluestone sees is business owners using overdraft facilities or maxing out credit cards to fund their businesses and then going to a lender to consolidate their debts.

For brokers working with business owners, this is another area to look out for, and D’Vaz says alt-doc loans should actually provide them with a bit of comfort.

“While there might have been some reluctance in the past, I think as brokers get

www.mpamagazine.com.au

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 30

3/06/2019 7:13:48 AM

educated they realise you’re getting to know the business better by looking at business bank statements, by looking at their BAS, by talking to their accountant,” he says.

“Brokers can actually get more comfort not only by doing their own loan investigation but also knowing the lenders are doing a lot more than just looking at tax returns.”

In the past year Bluestone has moved into the near prime space, away from the specialised lending to highly credit-impaired customers that it was traditionally known for. While it does still have those customers – they make up about 12% of the business – it

has now moved up the credit curve primarily servicing borrowers with clean credit.

The biggest challenge for Bluestone at this time is ensuring brokers know they are in this near prime space and are aware of the due diligence that goes into alt-doc lending. There is no automated system; an assessor makes a decision on each loan based on the borrower’s individual circumstances.

To get the message out, Bluestone is running workshops and webinars, as well as group discussions like coffee clubs. The lender brings along its own credit assessors to allow brokers to ask questions and get answers from

someone who has the technical knowledge.

The education of brokers goes beyond that, though. “We’re doing a lot to educate them not just on what Bluestone is doing but how to understand where these clients are, what these clients look like, what are their characteristics, and why they should be diversifying into this space,” D’Vaz says.

Diversification is something most industry experts are encouraging, particularly as mortgage brokers were recently faced with the prospect of losing their trail income.

But it is not necessarily as simple as waking up one day and deciding you will

www.mpamagazine.com.au

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 31

31

3/06/2019 7:13:58 AM

FEATURES

ALT-DOC LOANS

LA TROBE’S TAKE How is La Trobe helping brokers with alt-doc?

Cory Bannister, La Trobe: We have realised that in order to build ongoing and lasting relationships with customers, you need to be able to provide a solution when they need it. To this end, we pride ourselves on our ability to provide stability in the 3 P’s – Product, Price and Policy – which we are told by brokers is what they seek the most in the current complex environment.

By way of specific products, we continue to get great support for our Residential Lite-Doc® and Commercial Lite-Doc® products and currently have some great interest rate specials available for owner-occupiers that allow for credit impairment whilst delivering a competitive interest rate.

We hold regular webinars, PD Days and presentations to assist and educate brokers on our broker range, and send a bi-monthly newsletter with our latest news. We have also implemented a monthly scenario program to help brokers learn more about how we can workshop products for them.

On top of that, we make our 64 dedicated credit analysts and 28 partnership managers nationally directly contactable to assist and educate brokers from start to finish.

now offer business loans or alt-doc loans; brokers need to know the products and what documentation lenders need. This is why lenders are providing more and more training sessions to help brokers.

La Trobe Financial has implemented a monthly scenario program to help brokers learn more about how the lender can workshop products with them. So, whether it is a new scenario in a space they have worked in thousands of times, or they are brand new to the space, the lender is there to help.

The group holds regular webinars, personal development days and presentations to assist and educate brokers on its product range. It is important to La Trobe that brokers understand its products. Bannister says that as the oldest operating non-bank in Australia it has more than 66 years of providing solutions for underserved markets.

“Our core purpose since we began in 1952 is to service those borrowers who are underserved by major lenders,” he says. “So when, for whatever reason, the banks narrow

32

their lending spectrum as we have seen recently, we are ready to assist.”

Addressing the recent tightening by banks in areas such as alt-doc loans, Bannister says, “The banks’ withdrawal has largely been due to their simplification strategy. They do not want to commit the resources required to underwrite these loans appropriately, and that is both fine and appropriate; however, we do, and we can, and we will remain in this sector for the long run.”

Providing the right tools While lenders continue to educate brokers about the products they can provide, the resounding message is that alt-doc is not that different from a full-doc loan.

Resimac’s BDMs, however, are on hand to train and support brokers who are submitting applications for the first time.

Ultimately, Carde says, brokers need to remember that alt-doc borrowers should be treated in the same way as full-doc borrowers.

“A broker still needs to ask the borrower

“So when, for whatever reason, the banks narrow their lending spectrum as we have seen recently, we are ready to assist” Cory Bannister, La Trobe Financial

the same range of questions they would any other borrower type, and still needs to be comfortable that the loan is not unsuitable and that they are meeting their responsible lending obligations.”

Resimac has more than 10 years’ experience in alt-doc lending, so it is well placed to support brokers throughout the process. It provides training sessions to both large and small broker groups, offering guidance on the types of information they should gather, what questions they should ask their borrowers, and how to package the loans ready for assessment.

In terms of technology, Resimac offers

www.mpamagazine.com.au

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 32

3/06/2019 11:24:58 AM

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 33

3/06/2019 11:25:12 AM

FEATURES

ALT-DOC LOANS

LIBERTY’S TAKE Why does Liberty continue to offer alt-doc loans?

John Mohnacheff, Liberty: Alt-doc is about working with the broker to understand the customer’s circumstances given the information and data that is easily accessible. We’re a firm believer in providing a service that overcomes challenges for customers. As a specialty lender, we have always focused on helping those that other lenders don’t. It‘s a commitment we made and there’s no reason for us to ever stop being the friend of the self-employed. It gives us great satisfaction knowing that we have helped thousands of Australians realise their financial dreams.

“It doesn’t mean you’re not eligible for a loan … If there are lots of ways of earning an income there are lots of ways of assessing an income” John Mohnacheff, Liberty

a QuickQuote tool to assist with an initial serviceability assessment as well as a security location check; the lender’s BrokerZone also includes guides and checklists for when the broker submits the application.

These tools are crucial in supporting brokers no matter what stage of their career they are at, and they help brokers in their diversification journeys.

Pepper offers Pepper Product Selector, which identifies a specific product, interest

34

rate and fees for any client in less than two minutes. For brokers offering a diversified range, tools like this are invaluable for keeping track of all the various products.

For brokers offering alt-doc loans, Pepper has a five-step process that helps the broker position an alternative home loan with a customer who may not have been expecting a solution.

Milburn says, “Ever since we began, Pepper has led the way in terms of broker education and making things easier. That’s why our broker toolkit arms brokers with the insights, tools and expertise to give their business a winning edge.”

The education and support are not just for the broker. As Liberty’s Mohnacheff says, the customer also needs to be educated so they understand that there are alternative products out there.

He paints one particular scenario that many do not consider. Borrowers who take out a home loan while they are PAYG employees do not have to let their lender know if they later become self-employed.

Circumstances change, but sometimes borrowers don’t appreciate the impact this can have on their ability to obtain finance, until they look to refinance or upgrade their homes.

Brokers have a real opportunity here to service these borrowers who will generally not know the difference between a full-doc loan and an alt-doc loan. “And why would they?” says Mohnacheff.

“When circumstances change, this is where the borrower will ask, ‘what do I do now?’ When this happens, there are lenders like Liberty who strive to help. This is why I urge all brokers to not be anxious about alt-doc but to instead become familiar.”

Liberty is known for its push towards diversification and is looking at ways to make this easier for the broker so that it can in turn benefit the customer.

As well as training sessions and BDMs on hand to assist brokers, the lender has invested money in technology to make its processes simple and fast.

“How can we electronically facilitate the things that people don’t like doing?”

Mohnacheff says. “Printing off the bank statements, scanning them all – we can do that electronically.

“We will engage online, we will send them a letter, we will help the broker engage and make things easier or streamline and simplify the processes. But never to the detriment of underwriting – those standards are essential.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 34

3/06/2019 11:24:39 AM

28-35 Alt Docs_SUBBED.indd 35

3/06/2019 11:24:45 AM

FEATURES

COMPLIANCE

Tony Carn: Keeping compliant With the spotlight on lending practices, brokers have to be more careful than ever about submitting the right documents and sticking to compliance rules.

NextGen.Net sales director Tony Carn tells MPA how the company is making this more efficient for brokers, particularly when dealing with variations MPA: What problems are you trying to overcome when it comes to brokers facilitating variations to their home loans?

Tony Carn: With variations it’s really important to standardise them. I could go to a lender as a broker and say I’ve got a customer who wants to switch from P&I to interest-only. Unfortunately, but typically, the lender will respond in a number of ways.

They may say, can you send in a full application and put something in the notes?

Or they may say you need to go to a call centre, or you need to go to a branch, or you may be able to do this online through our ApplyOnline platform. One of the problems that creates is it’s not a concrete way for a broker to facilitate those transactions for a customer.

With the advent of the royal commission and targeted reviews by APRA, we are seeing a change in the market in many ways, and it really does throw the spotlight on the importance of variations.

Perhaps the most important of those is under the banner of responsible lending, and I would put that into two categories. It means making sure you do proper assessment of the living expenses of

36

NEXTGEN.NET IN THE NEWS NextGen.Net has expanded its user experience (UX) team with a new hire, welcoming Prince Antony as its team lead.

Creating the optimal user experience has been at the heart of NextGen.Net’s product design and development since the technology provider’s inception.

Antony came on board last year to drive the UX strategy and hone the UX team’s charter. Revitalising existing customercentric design principles that draw heavily from user feedback, and providing opportunities to reduce duplication, streamline processes and create a perfect user experience, is his focus.

Highlighting the value of a good UX design, the new ‘Supporting Documents’ service user interface was launched in May.

the customer. The second thing is to ensure that the product you’re approving for a customer meets their requirements and objectives. ‘What’s in their best interest?’ is really the full evolution of that.

What the industry has done and is doing very well is facilitating its own compliance to ensure they have responsible lending standards for new customers, and the real challenge now going forward is what about existing customers and their in-life-cycle transactions? Particularly when they do a transaction or variation which is deemed a significant credit event, and that means it’s primarily changing their requirements and objectives.

MPA: What has NextGen.Net done to overcome these issues?

TC: What we’ve introduced in ApplyOnline in response to consultation with a number of key stakeholders in the market is a new ‘Compliance tab’. When you do a digital application through ApplyOnline it’s in tabular format, so we’ll have the customer details, the security details, the financial details, and it’s introducing a new component to that, which is compliance. So we’ve created a standardised approach.

What lenders have said to brokers is we have introduced a standardised broker interview guide which asks questions that basically ensure the requirements and objectives of the customer are being properly captured.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

36-39 Expert Spotlight_Nextgen_SUBBED.indd 36

3/06/2019 7:17:23 AM

We’ve standardised those questions and we’ve standardised our schema. What that means is when a broker group in their CRM sends us all the data for an application, they can send us the data captured in relation to the requirements and objectives; it’ll map straight into the digital application and there’s no more work to be done.

We don’t see compliance becoming any less of a responsibility in the future, so it’s not just things such as requirements and objectives that we capture but we’ve also released a standard for the banking code of practice, and that will also form part of that compliance tab.

MPA: What does this mean for brokers?

TC: The other thing that fell out of the royal commission was the question of what do brokers do for trail? I think everyone in our industry and everyone that’s ever enjoyed the services of broker would agree that yes, they do a lot. I know that I can go back to my broker if I need to review my circumstances, if I need help dealing with the bank, or if I need to do a variation.

The problem is how empowered are they by the majority of lenders to actually look after a customer on an ongoing basis.

Where a broker has to say to a customer, “I can’t help you with that, you need to ring the bank”, it does potentially raise a question for the consumer of what value is my broker providing me?

When they’re doing it via ApplyOnline, there’s empowerment by the lender to say to a broker, “Here are the tools and the process for you to facilitate a variation for an existing customer”.

It will cover off their requirements and objectives because we ask, “What are the objectives you’re looking to achieve?” And we’ll capture their living expenses, so that enables the broker to facilitate a transaction with certainty that the lender is meeting its responsible lending requirements.

“I think everyone in our industry and everyone that’s ever enjoyed the services of broker would agree that yes, they do a lot” www.mpamagazine.com.au

36-39 Expert Spotlight_Nextgen_SUBBED.indd 37

37

3/06/2019 7:17:42 AM

FEATURES

COMPLIANCE

KEY FACTS

97%

“Having that easier, more responsive and contemporary design makes it an easier process for the broker, and gives better comfort back to the customer that yes, we’ve got all the documents we’re going to need”

of mortgage brokers use ApplyOnline

1993

year NextGen.Net established

50+

lenders use ApplyOnline

700,000 loan applications facilitated per year

38

What’s very important here is that lenders are actually empowering brokers to facilitate that, by saying, “We’ve got our process for submitting new applications, but we’ve also enabled you to efficiently manage variations for a customer”. It also addresses the very important question of perceived channel conflict.

MPA: You’ve introduced a new user interface to help brokers with supporting documents. Can you explain that?

TC: Yes, we’ve released a new user interface for our ‘Supporting Documents’ tab. It’s a more contemporary design; it’s also fully responsive so it works on any screen. It’s a lot simpler and designed to make the identification of what documents are required very clear up front to avoid more rework.

Having that easier, more responsive and contemporary design makes it an easier process for the broker, and again it gives better comfort back to the customer that yes, we’ve got all the documents we’re going to need – we should have a consistent approval time.

I think one thing that frustrates everyone in the industry is turnaround times and having to do things more than once. So, enhancing the UI to improve experience and streamline the process works towards addressing both frustrations. Importantly, brokers will have the choice of using the new version or continuing to use the old.

What’s important is that our customer success managers are available and on hand to perform training sessions to help our users get the most out of the enhancement.

We differentiate ourselves by having experience-on-the-ground resources available who focus on training brokers, BDMs and lender staff. They contribute to PD days and undertake webinars, face-to-face training and group sessions. Their objective is to ensure our users understand the tools available and gain maximum efficiencies from ApplyOnline.

MPA: How will you continue to improve services for brokers?

TC: I look at a lot of players in the market, and you can copy and replicate others, or you can come up with original ideas and lead from the forefront by investing in research and development. Part of that is having really good engagement with the market and partnerships with your customers.

So, whether it’s a broker or whether it’s a lender group, it’s about making sure you’re ahead of the curve and understand the challenges that the market and your customers are facing; and you’re identifying the best way to develop a standardised approach to address each challenge.

It’s understanding what are the real challenges and what are the biggest priorities of change or evolution that you have to make.

That’s an ongoing thing that’s engrained in our DNA.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

36-39 Expert Spotlight_Nextgen_SUBBED.indd 38

3/06/2019 7:18:52 AM

36-39 Expert Spotlight_Nextgen_SUBBED.indd 39

3/06/2019 7:19:02 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

TOP 10 BROKERAGES 2019 2019 10 TOP BROKERAG BROKER AGES AG ES BROKERAGES TOP 10

2019

Brokers have been fighting against changing credit policies, the threat of losing commissions and falling borrower numbers over the last year, but these brokerages have overcome all that with increased focus on the customer experience, diversification and a commitment to education and training

40

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 40

3/06/2019 7:23:01 AM

IN LAST YEAR’S Top 10 Brokerages report MPA said the year prior had been one of the toughest in recent memory.

But then along came the next 12 months, when we saw continued scrutiny during the royal commission and came to a sudden realisation that Commissioner Hayne might actually recommend banning commissions.

Then of course the recommendation came in his final report in February, sparking deep fear within the industry among those who were worried about their livelihoods and the jobs they were passionate about. But out of that grew a strong resilience, and the fight for mortgage brokers really kicked off.

Brokers did not have to be part of the big advertising campaigns or conversations with government; simply working in the best interests of their customers and having conversations with them was part of that fight. The head of the number one brokerage in this year’s Top 10 told MPA that his customers had begun phoning him to voice concern for the industry because brokers had been there for them through some of their toughest times.

When we spoke to our Top 10 Brokerages this year, the biggest theme of our discussions was their passion for the customer. For some, falling house prices and tightened credit had simply given them more time to educate themselves so they could better service their clients – and that was what was important to them.

Many brokerages hold frequent training sessions to keep their brokers on top of the changing credit policies.

Some also encourage group support sessions to workshop scenarios so that brokers who have experienced similar

situations are able to guide the rest of the team.

Changing credit policies were the biggest challenge for these brokerages over the last year, but they explained how they had prepared for this. In some cases they diversified their product portfolios, and in others they had already introduced systems to start dealing with extra documentation.

Although it might be easy to say that the biggest challenge of the year was changing credit policies or the impact of the royal commission, it was interesting to hear from these brokerages about what really affected them.

There were two resounding answers. The first was the royal commission, but not because of the impact of changing regulations or anger about what was said in the hearings; these heads of brokerages were most affected by worry about their teams and their teams’ families. They saw how difficult it was for their brokers to focus on their jobs and how disheartened they were.

The second was the challenge of recruiting new brokers. All these brokerages want to continue to grow but have found it hard to recruit staff.

They faced difficulties either in assessing potential recruits for the right fit beyond what was written in their résumés, or because new brokers were too nervous to enter the industry at a time when no one really knew what was going to happen.

Read on to find out more about how these brokerages overcame the challenges of the last year.

Thank you to everyone who took part. Featuring in this list at this time is a significant achievement and a credit to all your hard work.

HOW WERE THE WINNERS SELECTED? In recent years, MPA has produced two separate Top 10 Brokerages lists – one for independents and one for franchises.

This year, we decided to bring them together to form one overall list. We asked broker groups to submit their top franchises and aggregators to submit their top independents. We ranked them on a combination of three areas: total loan book size, total settlements over a 12-month period, and conversion rate. Each brokerage was given a ranking in each of these areas, and the ranks were then combined to produce a final tally.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 41

41

3/06/2019 7:23:03 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

10

MORTGAGE CHOICE MIAMI Providing a service for the whole community

Total loan book

$550,000,000 Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$184,472,624

Number of loan writers

6

Avg annual volume/broker

$30,745,437 Conversion rate

49%

SINCE 2006, Mortgage Choice Miami has worked to bring its broking expertise to the Gold Coast and build relationships with the community. For founder and director James Hasselle, getting the best outcome for the customer is non-negotiable.

“It’s never been as hard as it is now to get a loan or gain access to credit,” he says. “But if you’re doing things properly, you should still be able to help. It’s our duty to help customers gain that competitive edge.”

Where brokers can really help, Hasselle believes, is with everyday borrowers: families and small businesses

that are looking to negotiate their way through the often-complex borrowing rules set out by the banks.

“The new credit rules can really cause them problems, particularly if they’ve had a few rejected applications already,” says Hasselle. “The level of experience we possess is a crucial asset.”

With new offices opened in Burleigh Heads and Palm Beach in the last few years, business looks to be booming. “We’re not just a small business any more,” says Hasselle. “We’re an employer, and that’s just one more way we [are] giving back to the local community.”

LOAN MARKET, ONE NETWORK BROKING

9

Regular and consistent training is the key to brokers’ relevancy

Total loan book

$529,691,274 Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$237,331,059

Number of loan writers

11

Avg annual volume/broker

$21,575,550 Conversion rate

66% 42

WHILE MOST of the Top 10 Brokerages this year said recruitment was one of their biggest challenges, only Loan Market, One Network Broking said it was a challenge they were beginning to enjoy. Director Nick Gurry has recruited new brokers who he expects to become top brokers in the next 12 months, and has set his sights on building his broking team to 15.

Like everyone else, Gurry has also faced the challenge of new lending policies, but the brokerage has been quick to learn how to get better and adapt.

It specialises in the residential mortgage space and has a strong focus on the customer experience.

“We like to call our relationship with our customers ‘professionally intimate’, with a focus on strong communication – with all brokers and support staff on the same page,” he says.

The brokerage has also taken its training and development “up a notch”. On top of the training Loan Market provides, it runs its own training sessions.

“I am particularly proud of the learning and growth culture of the team,” Gurry says. “We have traineeships and external training, but there’s also a heap of selfcoaching, peer-to-peer sessions and constant support from the entire team.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 42

3/06/2019 7:23:30 AM

THE FINANCIERS GROUP

8

Solid processes and a great team are the secret to success

Total loan book

$338,500,000 Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$165,000,000 FOR MANY brokers one challenge of the last 18 months was the emotional stress of worrying about the future of their businesses.

“There was this thing called the royal commission.

Emotionally, it was a bit of a scare,” says The Financiers Group director Chris Huynh.

But it did not stop the industry from doing its job, and in Huynh’s case it gave him the opportunity to reassess the business. “It made us review and put a lot of things in perspective,” he says.

From day one after its launch in 2015, the brokerage

focused on implementing solid processes. With a great team of brokers and admin staff, it was prepared to withstand the obstacles the industry has faced.

Still focusing mainly on residential loans, The Financiers Group has not had to diversify too much into commercial; however, it has broadened its customer base. While Huynh says the banks’ changing goalposts have been difficult, he and the team are prepared for the challenges. “In terms of documents and managing clients’ expectations we've always been prepared for tightening of credit.”

Number of loan writers

6

Avg annual volume/broker

$27,500,000 Conversion rate

95%

EMPOWER WEALTH

7

Building customer relationships in a difficult lending environment

Total loan book

$374,489,436 Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

PRIDING ITSELF on its relationship with its large customer base of property investors, Empower Wealth found one of the biggest challenges of the year to be navigating the current lending environment. Guiding customers through each stage of the journey to owning an investment property has been made much harder by the longer turnaround times and extra work.

“Getting appropriate funding for our clients’ planned journey meant we were challenged with excessive lending credit policy changes, long delays on the back of extra scrutiny and some unnecessary reworking,” says Ben Kingsley, founder and MD of Empower Wealth.

“Ultimately, a less productive and efficient lending environment leads to greater client expectation management and hand-holding, resulting in increased workloads for no client upside.”

Despite the challenges of the past year, the brokerage wrote some good figures and celebrates its success in “finding novel and advantageous ways” to help its customers. The group has built a cloud-based Wealth Portal and Money SMARTS system to help customers better manage their money and trap more surplus.

It plans to continue investing in innovation with the aim of deepening its connection with customers.

$263,508,986

Number of loan writers

6

Avg annual volume/broker

$43,918,164 Conversion rate

70.36%

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 43

43

3/06/2019 7:23:37 AM

FEATURES

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

6

MORTGAGE CHOICE BRISBANE

A young and adaptable team pull together to improve customer experience

Total loan book

$716,916,792 Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$145,843,490

Number of loan writers

5

Avg annual volume/broker

$29,168,698 Conversion rate

91%

5

BEING A GROUP of young brokers, the team at Mortgage Choice Brisbane face slight skepticism from those outside looking in. But managing director Matt Cunliffe has 15 years’ experience under his belt and says the youth of his team makes them energetic and able to adapt to anything.

The biggest challenge for Cunliffe over the past

GREEN FINANCE GROUP

Strong customer relationships are a key part of business growth

Total loan book

$611,159,616 Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$253,700,011

Number of loan writers

5

Avg annual volume/broker

$50,740,002 Conversion rate

86% 44

year was in February when the royal commission’s final report was released.

“The unknown of what might be happening to our industry, how that might play out with an effect on my family and the family of my staff around me – I have felt the burden of the unknown. It’s been a long waiting game,” he says.

With big plans to grow the business in the future and train his staff, Cunliffe was, like many brokers, waiting for the outcome of the federal election. But while he waited, they took the chance to reassess the business.

In September the team looked at its functions and processes and worked on building a new system to improve the client experience.

“Seeing the whole team work together to get the outcome, and the commitment that people have put forth, has made me really proud of the team.”

Cunliffe puts the brokerage’s success down to that same team, which has not seen a change in staff in two and a half years.

CLIENT EDUCATION has been an important part of the past year for Green Finance Group director Daniel Green. With increased regulatory frameworks and fluctuating bank policies, he has experienced additional documentation requirements and lengthier processing time frames.

“We’ve had to work harder to really educate clients about the change in lending landscape,” he says.

“Things like timing and preparation and the fact that just because their existing bank worked in the past doesn’t mean they’ll be receptive now.”

The Brisbane brokerage offers residential and commercial finance, and pub and hotel finance is Green’s personal specialty. Word-of-mouth referrals are an important tool and make up a large percentage of the business. Green prides himself on his relationship with his customers, many of which are repeat or longterm clients; there are business owners he has been working with for nearly two decades.

“A large portion of my clients are family owned and run businesses and, in some cases, I’m now assisting the third generation of these families,” he says.

As well as those relationships, Green puts the brokerage's success down to consistency and understanding his own limits. He has surrounded himself with a network of established professionals, including the finance specialists at Green Finance Group, lending colleagues, accountants, financial planners and real estate agents. Over the year ahead, it’s these business partnerships he’ll continue to grow.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 44

3/06/2019 7:28:56 AM

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 45

3/06/2019 7:29:13 AM

FEATURES

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

4

SHORE FINANCIAL Engaging in the customer’s journey and educating them along the way is where this brokerage finds success

Total loan book

$2,575,392,184

Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$940,514,047

Number of loan writers

24

Avg annual volume per broker

$39,188,085

Conversion rate

51%

46

THE BEST relationship with customers is one born out of interactions that educate them, says Shore Financial’s CEO Theo Chambers, and that is where he intends to continue his work over the next year.

Rather than having interactions in which they are just selling to customers, he says, “we want to create relationships from educating people”.

By improving the brokerage’s digital presence and offering tools like property seminars and online content, Chambers hopes to build customer trust by enabling them to have better conversations.

Already, the relationship with the borrower is not just a transactional one. The group has the biggest team out of all of our top 10 brokerages, and this includes financial planners, who work alongside the mortgage brokers to provide advice.

They work together not just to give the customer the most competitive rate but to provide a larger service, particularly with property investors.

“We really engage in the consumer’s journey of house-hunting, and by having highly educated individuals who understand tax strategies personally, they can relate to our clients’ goals and their motives when purchasing their second property or upsizing,” Chambers says.

One of the biggest challenges of the past year for Shore Financial was training and recruitment.

Holding interviews with a candidate who ticks all the boxes in terms of their résumé, training and education is fine, but it’s not as easy to assess their work ethic and attitude, which is crucial in this industry.

The other challenge was the market and having to manage client expectations. Over the last two years, with changes from APRA, plus the royal commission and higher assessment rates, it’s harder for people to borrow money.

“The morale of our team got disheartened with the extra hoops we’re jumping through to get loans approved,” Chambers said. “We’re the bearer of bad news, telling the consumer they can’t afford what they want to do.”

Despite the challenges, there were some great highlights for Shore Financial in the last year.

Individual team members have continued to develop in their roles, and the group’s property seminars have been very successful too.

The brokerage also offers exclusive rights to a number of real estate groups, allowing brokers to partner with agents and provide a more seamless transition for customers.

It’s these holistic offerings that Chambers really wants to focus on moving forward. The brokerage is already offering a diversified product portfolio, ranging from residential to car finance and commercial loans, and is also working on the launch of a white label product.

Chambers remembers a line he learnt while working at a major bank 10 years ago: “If you sell a consumer 3.8 products or services, that consumer becomes a client for life. So, we want to try to make sure we’ve got 3.8 products or services in place with our clients.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 46

3/06/2019 7:29:28 AM

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 47

3/06/2019 7:29:36 AM

FEATURES

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

3

AQUA FINANCIAL SERVICES Diversification has proved to be a vehicle of success for this brokerage and its principal

Total loan book

$563,393,522

Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$201,072,346

Number of loan writers

5

Avg annual volume per broker

$40,214,469

Conversion rate

95%

48

SINCE 2011, Aqua Financial Services has marked itself out as a strong achiever within the broking field. Headed up by principal Daniel Hustwaite – and a regular fixture in MPA’s Top 100 Brokers list – the company has carved out its own niche across a variety of different fields, including home loans, investment property loans, SMSF, commercial and equipment/vehicle finance.

It’s a broad spectrum, but Aqua’s placement in this year’s list is testament to the positive power of diverse brokerages. As the lending market continues to shift, it’s essential for brokerages to stay ahead and secure their future.

In 2019, Aqua finds itself in the same position as many other Australian brokerages. The industry is changing, with rapid technological shifts driving both innovation and procedural change; new loan requirements, and the royal commission into financial services pushing for legislative changes.

But for Hustwaite it’s all part of the business. With almost two decades of experience in finance, he’s well aware of the cycles and challenges that come with the territory.

“I started working in finance and banking back in 2000,” Hustwaite says. “So I saw quite a bit even before I moved into broking.”

That's not to say he’s downplaying the seriousness of some of the current challenges in the industry.

He says brokers arguably have a more important role than ever before in helping clients secure loans and finance.

“The principles of responsible lending are currently in a bit of a flux, and accordingly we’ve seen borrowing capacities decrease significantly across the board,” says Hustwaite. “This means it’s trickier to get a loan approved.”

Recent years have also seen almost all Australian banks move away from the generally accepted practice of adjusting their rate settings in line with movements in the RBA cash rate.

“Since this time, we’ve started to see significant out-of-cycle movements and adjustments to the rates on offer by the banks,” says Hustwaite.

“We’re expecting this volatility to continue for the foreseeable future, so it’s more important than ever to be vigilant in monitoring client portfolios to ensure they are receiving the best outcomes for their specific circumstances.”

As part of this process, over the next 12 to 18 months Aqua will have a continued focus on process management, with the aim of streamlining as much as possible, ensuring efficiency without sacrificing service.

“The most important thing is that we’ve got to be flexible and adept enough to adapt to the changing regulatory and lending landscape,” says Hustwaite.

But just as importantly, Hustwaite aims to continue growing Aqua organically by leveraging its existing customer base and building deeper relationships with its strategic partners.

“The place a lot of businesses fall down is in not treating their existing customers as well as their new ones,” says Hustwaite. “But you need to make sure everyone is looked after properly; that’s why we are constantly in touch with customers, reassessing their current arrangements and looking at how we can help them get the best possible deal.”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 48

3/06/2019 7:29:53 AM

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 49

3/06/2019 7:30:10 AM

FEATURES

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

2

MY HOME LOAN

A deep sense of the customer experience could be the reason why the team at My Home Loan has come in at second place and with the highest conversion rate

Total loan book

$869,000,000

Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$206,587,060

THE SLOWING market has allowed the team at

Number of loan writers

5

Avg annual volume per broker

$41,317,412

Conversion rate

96%

50

My Home Loan to spend more time on education and training. Everything at this brokerage is designed to improve the customer experience, from algorithms for finding the right broker fit to simply spending time learning about credit policies.

Managing partner Darren Liu entered the mortgage broking industry in 2012 and established My Home Loan in early 2014. Contrary to its name, the group diversified in 2015 to offer a number of commercial finance products.

While the brokerage has not been long in the market, Liu says it has learnt to adapt and grow and develop the smooth processes that have helped take it to second place in this year's Top 10.

Early on in the business My Home Loan realised that customers felt uncomfortable with multiple brokers or assistants following up on their loan enquiries. The brokerage came up with a system and procedure to develop the best customer experience right from the start.

“When enquiries come into the system or into our office, we don’t randomly give them to one broker to follow up – we have an algorithm to match the customer,” he explains. As Liu says, different customers want different experiences.

“Each one of our consultants is specialised in different products and demographical locations.

We will allocate customers accordingly to achieve a better customer experience.”

Once a home loan is settled, the brokerage goes the extra step by offering the borrower help with setting up their utilities. It's a small gesture but one that provides that extra value.

My Home Loan grew significantly in its first year, thanks to the property boom, but as expected has slowed down in the current climate. While things are slow, Liu says they are using the time to concentrate on their education.

The team holds Mortgage Broker Academy sessions each week to talk about changing credit policies and make sure that everyone is on the front foot.

The program includes nine modules and is designed to help new-to-industry brokers understand the full picture in an efficient way, as well as enhance the sales and technical skills of experienced brokers. It is not only offered to My Home Loan staff but used as an opportunity to share experiences with other brokers in the industry.

As with other brokerages, My Home Loan has found recruitment a challenge as people have started to question the industry. To combat this, the group has been developing its training and education program to attract those candidates who are keen to learn.

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 50

3/06/2019 7:35:31 AM

BMM34855 - Advert - Better Alt - Full Page v4 - PRESS.pdf

1

31/05/2019

9:32:57 AM

Stuck? There is a Better Alternative...

“Outside The Box� with BMM Alt Doc + Other Solutions Better Mortgage Management provides more flexibility with over 40 different loan products.

BMM are the market leaders for Alt Doc Loans and other Out Of The Box Solutions.

Established in 1999 we are solution providers for Full Doc, Alt Doc, Investment, SMSF, Expat, Residential and Commercial loans.

Call us today!

Better service, Better products, Better rates

1300 857 275

scenario@bettermm.com.au Australian Credit Licence No. 389 612

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 51

3/06/2019 7:35:20 AM

SPECIAL REPORT

2019 TOP 10 BROKERAGES

1 Total loan book

$1,300,000,000

Total settlements 1 March 2018–28 February 2019

$313,000,000

Number of loan writers

16

Avg annual volume per broker

$19,562,500

Conversion rate

92%

52

ACCEPTANCE FINANCE A positive team attitude and supportive customer base has proved the winning formula for this brokerage THIS YEAR’S number one brokerage has “bucked the trend” and written more loans in the last year than ever before. Acceptance Finance CEO Daniel Di Conza says they have faced the same industry challenges as everyone else, but the group’s great teamwork and positive attitude have kept the business growing.

For Di Conza, one of the hardest parts of the last year was keeping a team of concerned brokers focused and enthusiastic in spite of the royal commission recommendations. But in these moments of uncertainty, they pulled together.

“It’s really easy to react negatively when you’re faced with these headwinds, but the most positive thing was seeing the team come together and support each other,” Di Conza says.

“When they thought the industry they were working in was going to evaporate, they worked harder together, supported each other with transactions, problemsolved, and gave each other moral support.”

Di Conza says this attitude was reflected in the service the brokerage provided to clients. Operating since 2002, Acceptance Finance has built a strong customer base.

After the royal commission's final report, the brokerage sent out a brief video message to let its clients know the potential impact.

“That sparked a fair bit of conversation, and clients were genuinely concerned,” Di Conza says. “They trust their brokers, and for them the relationship they have had with their brokers has helped navigate them through difficult times.”

With the royal commission enhancing customer support and forging strong bonds between brokers, Di Conza has a glass half full attitude.

“Sometimes these challenges we get can actually be really positive when you get through them,” he

“If you always look after the client everything else will look after itself ”

says. “The royal commission and focus on brokers is going to provide some positives for the industry – as painful as it was at the time.”

The team at Acceptance Finance is made up of subject matter experts, Di Conza says, focusing on areas like SMSF lending, investment properties and commercial lending. When one team member doesn’t understand an area quite so well, they workshop with others.

One of the biggest concerns for Di Conza moving

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 52

3/06/2019 7:30:45 AM

forward is about clawback for a facility that has not been used within a certain period. Working with a lot of property investors, his brokers are often asked to arrange a refinance and set up an investment facility for a future transaction.

Di Conza says the clawback policy gives brokers too much of a reason to change behaviours; for example, they might decide to do the refinance first and the investment facility as a separate transaction down the line when the borrower is ready for it, creating twice the paperwork for all involved while not providing any benefit for the client.

“Brokers are getting mixed messages,” he says.

“Are we looking after clients for a long period of time, or are we looking after them for a transaction?

Current clawback policies will conflict with best interest duty; a bit of work will need to be done for our industry to have them both at the same time.”

The other thing to focus on going forward is the growing costs of doing business. Di Conza is looking at where to place resources, and at boosting the relationships with referral partners.

Most importantly, he will stick to his simple but effective strategy: “Advise the client as if you’re advising yourself. If you always look after the client, everything else will look after itself.”

CEO Daniel Di Conza (back row, third from left) and the team at Acceptance Finance receive their MPA trophy

www.mpamagazine.com.au

40-53_Top 10 Brokerages_SUBBED_FIXED.indd 53

53

3/06/2019 7:30:58 AM

PEOPLE

CAREER PATH

A SHAPER OF CHANGE Taking a leap into the world of consultancy helped MoneyPlace founder and CEO Stuart Stoyan become a driver of growth and transformation in the financial services industry Stuart Stoyan took a strategy consultant post 2007 at Accenture upon graduating. Working LEARNS FROM with leaders of major organisations on EXPERIENCE their most complex problems gave him Stoyan took a year off consultancy CHOOSES useful insights into the challenges of to help James Smith, current CTO ‘MYSTERIOUS’ growing and transforming businesses.

PATH at MoneyPlace, scale and sell He went on to work in strategy for 10-plus his web agency, Bland Consulting. years. “I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, The business that acquired Bland and ‘strategy consultant’ sounded mysterious and vague Consulting overcapitalised, blew up mid-GFC and eventually shut down. The enough to be interesting.” experience taught Stoyan valuable lessons on how to grow a sustainable business.

2001

2008

SOLVES COMPLEX PROBLEMS Having helped to successfully sell Bland, Stoyan returned to management consulting and joined Bain & Company, where he continued working with financial services clients to solve their most complex problems. He was involved in large transformation projects and in implementing customer advocacy programs built around the Net Promoter Score.

2014

LAUNCHES MONEYPLACE Stoyan left NAB and founded MoneyPlace, which gave him an amazing opportunity to not only help redefine how personal loans were provided in Australia but also to grow the country’s then-fledgling fintech industry. In 2018, Liberty acquired MoneyPlace; together they’re bringing the latter’s award-winning personal loans to more brokers and customers.

“MoneyPlace is now one of the fastest-growing consumer lenders in the country, and I am immensely proud of what our team has been able to achieve.”

2019 and beyond

CHAMPIONING BROKERS Stoyan hopes that in 10 years MoneyPlace will see one in every two personal loans being originated by a broker. Its broker channel is now taking the lead in bringing in new customers. Following the royal commission, MoneyPlace has seen a huge uptick in its brokers showing interest in diversifying and obtaining new accreditations. “Australian borrowers struggle to understand which personal loan is best for them, and we see a very real need for brokers in the space. Broker penetration of personal loans is less than 1–2%; it is our mission to help grow the broker personal loan market to reach levels that are comparable to the mortgage space.”

54

2011

CROSSES OVER TO CLIENT SIDE Stoyan became head of strategy for NAB Business. One of his proudest accomplishments was launching the bank’s commercial broker channel in under nine months. It has gone on to become one of the key growth drivers of NAB’s business.

“After a decade of being a consultant, it was awesome to be on the client side.”

2015

SHAPING GROWTH OF FINTECH Stoyan helped establish Fintech Australia, serving as inaugural board member and chair. He also founded Australia’s leading fintech industry survey, Fintech Census, and was a member of the government’s Fintech Advisory Group and the Data Standards Body Advisory Committee. “Over the past four years I’ve had the privilege of helping shape fintech policies, including on CCR and open banking.

We are in the midst of a once-in-a-generation opportunity to help reshape the financial services sector, and I am very grateful for my chance to contribute.”

“The insights that can be gleaned by asking ‘How likely would you be to recommend us and why?’ are so powerful that they help organisations unpick what drives customer loyalty”

www.mpamagazine.com.au

54-55_Career Path_SUBBED.indd 54

3/06/2019 7:36:24 AM

54-55_Career Path_SUBBED.indd 55

3/06/2019 7:36:35 AM

PEOPLE

OTHER LIFE

TELL US WHAT YOU GET UP TO Email rebecca.pike@keymedia.com

“Accu mulated sport attitudes a nd ha bits have shaped my personal a nd professional approa ches to life a nd have u ndou bta bly contributed to my overall su ccess”

11

Age when Martin began playing field hockey

750

Estimated number of games Martin has played

1977

Won Best Player award in SA Hockey Carnival Series

SILVER FOX PLAYS ON KnowHow Property Finance founder Bushy Martin has been playing field hockey for nearly five decades and shows no signs of slowing down FINANCE BROKER and KnowHow Property Finance founder Bushy Martin just knew field hockey was the game for him when he saw it played in the 1972 Olympics.

“I have been part of a series of successful teams over the last 47 years,” Martin says.

“For the last 17, I have been playing at A-grade level with the Aldinga Black Stingrays. During those years, we have reached the finals every season and won the premiership six times.”

While Martin loves the intense physical and mental demand of field hockey and the camaraderie it fosters, he know he needs to be extremely committed to his daily fitness and dietary regimen to compete with athletes who are generally half his age.

But as he has got better at reading the game strategically, he’s learned that playing smart is better than playing fast. “The old saying ‘Old age and treachery will always beat youth and exuberance’ rings true here!” he says.

Still playing what many see as a young man's game, Martin has been nicknamed ‘Silver Fox’, which, to his surprise, has earned him greater respect among his clients and peers. He won the Best Team Player Award in 2012 and the Captain’s Award in 2014.

“Dedication, discipline, patience and persistence are critical to both my sport and career,” he says.

56

www.mpamagazine.com.au

56-IBC_Other Life_SUBBED_Pic to change.indd 56

3/06/2019 11:13:26 AM

Would you like to get an Indicative Offer for your client in less than 2 minutes?

Pepper Product Selector.

Customer’s Credit Bureau score

+

Handful of simple questions

=

Indicative offer Best fit Pepper Money Product

(including rate & fees)

Call 1800 737 737 pepper.com.au/pps Pepper Group Ltd ACN 094 317 665 Australian Credit Licence Number 286655 is the servicer of loans by Pepper Finance Corporation Limited ACN 094 317 647.

56-IBC_Other Life_SUBBED_Pic to change.indd 57

The Real Life Alternative

3/06/2019 11:13:38 AM

The freedom to do it your way Join the aggregator that helps you drive business growth

1300 65 66 37 connective.com.au/info-pack

56-IBC_Other Life_SUBBED_Pic to change.indd 58

3/06/2019 11:18:41 AM