Brokers should steer clear of favouring lenders and be open to alternative lending options in the market, an award-winning Sydney broker has said.
Kathy Dundas, owner of No Fuss Homeloans was recently crowned Readers’ Choice Mortgage Broker of the Year in Australian’s Brokers sister publication and consumer title, Your Investment Property. Speaking to Australian Broker about the recognition, Dundas said she ensures she invests time to compare a variety of different lending option in the market and steers clear of playing favourites.
“My thoughts and my process around finding a loan for a particular customer was what probably earned me Your Investment Property’s Readers’ Choice Mortgage Broker of the Year.
“There a lot of brokers out there who really favour a particular lender and I think they perhaps struggle a little bit at the moment when they discover that their favoured lender will no longer do they need it to do in the best interests of their customer.
“You’ve got to develop that knowledge and process of constantly looking at many different lenders – and my process is to narrow it down to half a dozen before talking through each option with the client to figure out which one they feel is the most comfortable to deal with.”
According to Dundas, the value proposition of non-bank lenders has really matured with some non-bank niches unmatched by the major banks.
“I have been a fan of non-banks for a while. I do not have a favourite lender so I will consider all options,” she told Australian Broker.
“Non-banks were historically a good option for many clients who didn’t fit the usual mould, but now I am realising they are a great option for most of my clients, especially in the investment space. They are offering another layer of options which my clients seem very keen to take up, including their competitive interest rates.
“The non-bank lenders’ offerings have really matured over recent times and they have got niches now that the majors just can’t match. I am finding that more of my clients are very happy to switch from a major bank to a non-bank, particularly given the recent rate rises from the majors.”
Whilst some clients can be sceptical about non-bank lenders, who don’t have the same brand power as the major banks, Dundas says she is finding that more and more of her clients are coming around, especially her investor clients.
“Some clients are very sceptical and they want security of a brand and of course the majors offer them that security. There are some clients who will not even entertain going to a non-bank but I am finding more and more now that once you sit down with a customer with a comparison report then they can see that a non-bank lender offering is a much more attractive one," she told Australian Broker.
“Once you have that discussion with them then I find that they feel a whole lot more comfortable, especially with investors, as they are not looking for a whole package. Investors don’t want a credit card or transaction account with it; they just want an investment loan.”
