If you want to become a finance broker, you will need to think about your education, qualifications, licences, and join professional industry associations. But relax. It is not as daunting as it sounds. If you are looking into a career as a finance broker, here is what you need to know.
Beyond expertly handling home loans, a finance broker organizes the finances for any number of loan types, such as personal and car loans, and arranges a wide variety of insurance policies. Finance brokers also have close ties to building societies, banks, and other lending institutions and can connect with them to find you the best possible deal.
Finance brokers also have specialties, such as trading stocks and other commodities like minerals and metals. These types of finance brokers do the work to negotiate the best prices for you. Finance brokers can also give you advice on how best to manage your investments by building a sound financial strategy, though it depends on their certifications.
Finance brokers deal with several financial products, such as insurance and mortgages, stocks and car and personal loans. Since these are their areas of expertise, financial brokers typically have slight variations in their tasks from day-to-day, though generally, many have similar roles.
The more common responsibilities of financial brokers include, but are not limited to: attracting clients though marketing and networking; meeting clients to talk about their financial products or investment needs; preparing reports on clients’ financial situations and advising ways to improve or maintain their status; advising and supporting clients with financial decision-making through life changes like marriage, divorce, or retirement; using software, documents, or other tools to comb through hundreds of products to match with their clients’ needs; talking with financial institutions or insurance providers about their clients’ needs and finalizing the best plan for all parties; organizing the paperwork and talking to the relevant legal entities until the loan or policy is enacted; and ensuring that all insurances, loans, and contracts adhere to current federal and state laws and regulations.
The various ways to become a finance broker include:
Complete high school or finish a high school equivalent course. If you want to become a finance broker, you will need to get a tertiary qualification. You can start this process by completing Year 12 studies either through attending high school or finishing an equivalent course at a different educational institution. You could also consider finishing a tertiary preparation certificate if you want to change careers and have not taken part in formal education in a number of years. It is common for tertiary education institutes to offer programs of this kind.
Undertake a qualification in financial broking. There are numerous options for qualification for potential finance brokers, everything from bachelor level to certificate. A few examples of courses available to you are Diploma of Finance and Mortgage Broking Management, Bachelor of Business (Financial Planning), and Certificate IV in Finance and Mortgage Broking. If you enter into your training full time, these courses can take anywhere from one to four years to complete.
Apply for a credit licence and/or financial services licence. You can apply for either an Australian financial services licence through the Australian Securities and Investment Commission or a credit licence in order to operate as a finance broker. Depending on the services you provide, you can hold both or either licence. If you want to offer loan or mortgage broker services, you will need a credit licence. An Australian financial services licence is appropriate if you give out financial advice, provide insurance brokering services, or provide other services that deal in financial products.
Join a professional industry association. You could also join a professional industry association to further your career prospects and appeal to a broader client pool. This step is optional in your pursuit to become a finance broker. Prominent associations in Australia include the Financial Services Institute of Australasia, the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia, and Finance Brokers Association of Australia. More study or work may be needed to become accredited by some of these organizations.
The Australian government’s job outlook resource projects finance brokers to have strong growth prospects at least for the next few years. Data indicates that 83% of finance brokers are working full-time—higher than the national average of 66%. The government also predicts that the industry of finance broking will grow around 5.9% between 2020 and 2025.
