A multi-award winning broker and his Brisbane-based brokerage have launched a mortgage-themed parody site of the controversial dating site Ashely Madison, just in time for Valentine’s Day.
The site, www.bankleymadison.com.au, pokes fun at the Australian banks and mortgage lenders who openly provide better rates and deals to new customers, and in effect, cheat on their existing customers.
The site – whose tagline is ‘
it’s a mortgage, not a marriage. Have some fun ;-)’ – makes subtle hints to recent news stories involving the banks and shows genuine offers they currently have available to new customers.
Jayden Vecchio, director of the Brisbane-based Discovery Finance Group, says their intention is to show, using humour, how customers can get back at these “cheating banks” who offer better rates and deals to new customers while forgetting about servicing their existing ones.
“I've been in the mortgage industry for several years and I've noticed with the recent rate increases and regulatory changes there are larger than ever rate disparities between new and existing borrowers,” Vecchio said.
“I’ve personally seen people paying up to 1% more. This means on a $300,000 loan that a new home owner could be saving over $3,000 per year more than an existing one. That could make a significant difference to the average Australia.
“I hope the Bankley Madison page sheds light on the situation for existing home owners and gets them to ask their bank or mortgage broker the question – ‘Do I have the best rate and deal available?’ And if not they need to take some action.”
Vecchio came up with the idea when he was recently helping his mother and father who had been with the same bank for over 20 years with their loan. He said he tried to speak with his parent’s banker to review their mortgage product which had increased three times over the past 12 months alone.
Vecchio his parents were on older and outdated lending products but the bank wouldn't allow them to change the loan product without paying significant fees.
“Oddly we found in my parent’s situation it was cheaper to refinance to a new bank, who provided significantly lower rates, fees and we're also offering a $1250 cash incentive.
“This goes to show that unfortunately in banking – loyalty doesn't pay.”
