ASX-listed mortgage brokerage, N1 Loans, has developed a “smarter” online
mortgage calculator, which doubles as a comparison tool.
Speaking to
Australian Broker, the CEO of N1 Loans,
Ren Wong, said seekaloan.com.au – set to officially launch next week – uses a unique algorithm to calculate a consumer’s borrowing capacity, and then compares suitable home loan options based on that calculation.
The site will compare up to six different home loan options, presented in three categories: major banks, second-tier banks and non-bank lenders.
“A lot of the mortgage calculators on the internet are just not accurate and not smart enough to tell [a borrower] what options are available in the market. Also, as brokers, we want to be able to educate the market of second-tier and non-bank lenders,” Wong told
Australian Broker.
N1 Loans launched a Chinese comparison site, chengdai.com.au, in April 2015. After its success, Wong said it was a natural decision to launch seekaloan.com.au for the local English-speaking market. However, with a wealth of competing mortgage calculators and comparison sites already in the market, Wong said he was focused on creating a “smarter” service.
“N1 has always found growth opportunities in the fintech area and we believe technology is the way to grow our business.
“So as part of N1’s diversification strategy I wanted to continue the success into the English-speaking market, as 30% of our client base speak only English. However, we wanted to be more than just an ordinary comparison website that bombarded borrowers with hundreds of home loan options – hence the idea of ‘smarter borrowing’. This enables borrowers to work out their borrowing capacity more accurately and be presented with up to only six options.
“We researched many lenders’ servicing calculations and developed our own algorithm that resembles most lenders in the market in general, but can be a little bit more conservative, in alignment to our concept of smarter borrowing. We want to educate the market not to be over-leveraged in property.”
Wong said the site also offers real benefits to its brokers.
“This is a lead generation tool, which is the immediate benefit [for our brokers]. Apart from that, it reduces our client communication lead time because borrowers have done a little bit of self education online, which sets realistic expectations to clients as to how much they can really look a,” Wong told
Australian Broker.
“Also, the website actively presents home loans products categorised by major banks, second-tier banks and non-bank lenders. As brokers, our job is to enable competition for the benefits of consumers.”
