.jpg)
A neobank has spent the time awaiting its banking licence from APRA developing a home loan proposition that “eliminates key pain points brokers have with other lenders,” creating a faster, less cumbersome lending process.
Speaking to Australian Broker, lead developer for 86 400’s home loan proposition Melissa Christy explained, “The focus has been on doing something really different in the broker space that’s just not there at the moment.”
“This proposition was born out of seeing where brokers were getting stuck in the process, what they liked and what they wanted out of a home loan. We’ve got a team working on this that has worked in the mortgage space for a long time.”
Having spent a significant portion of her career at banks like Westpac, St George, and Virgin, Christy has drawn from her experience to directly address the broker frustrations that arose from their systems and processes, in the neobank’s current loan development.
“In a bigger organisation, it’s really hard to change something because it’s going to affect a lot of different systems,” she noted.
“The experience that the brokers will go through with us will be quite different, something that they’re not used to. It’s really exciting, because we think their productivity will definitely increase if they’re applying for our products.”
While the offerings may have the same features as other lenders, it’s the broker and customer experience that has been entirely rethought.
“The key thing we’re focusing on is making the broker’s life a lot easier by giving faster times for a yes or no, and considerably reducing the amount of documentation that’s needed to support a home loan application up front,” said Christy.
“Brokers want something that is quicker and easier to apply for, so they can do more business rather than spend all their time chasing up a deal and handholding it through the process.”
The commitment to heeding broker feedback won’t end once the products have been officially launched.
Christy explained, “We’ll have BDMs on the road that will speak with brokers every day, so feedback will come to the team and we can improve what isn’t working right.
“If we get brokers saying they want something, we will definitely try to implement it,” she concluded.
