Devastating floods along the east coast have reminded mortgage broker Ollie Lum of how important technology and community are to brokers.
Lum (pictured), the residential loan manager at AAA Financial Group, said brokers could prepare for future wild weather events by incorporating technology platforms such as video messaging website LOOM and lender serviceability website Quickli into their businesses.
“I have noticed many of my clients want to talk about more than just the loan – they want to have that connected feeling,” Lum said.
“Using LOOM to fill in holes pre-meeting can have a lot of the loan work done in advance and having a Quickli session either live or recorded to go with that leaves time in the face to face or Zoom to have a more meaningful connection.”
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Lum wants to encourage other brokers to use technology tools so they can spend quality time with their clients and streamline their workday.
“Use tech to build better relationships with clients, BDMs, and your business,” Lum said. “These platforms can support and future proof your business.”
Lum said he took pride in ensuring his team was his number one priority, and on the importance of relationships with lenders at a personal level.
“It is pretty hard to ask a favour of your BDM when they have 400 emails and their house is flooded, or their partner and family are in insolation and you don’t understand them or where they are coming from,” he said.
Lum said supporting Australian businesses and Australian-made products could assist those that have been impacted by the recent floods.
“It’s important to follow business sentiment and support local when you can,” he said.
Lum’s advice to brokers who had been affected by flood was to keep everything in perspective.
“Look after your teams, and for me it is about consolidating and not always looking for growth of the book but growth of the connection and fulfillment of life,” he said.
“Health of the mind and body are front and foremost of this – we make a living with our mouths and brains. Revenue can follow but if one of these two breaks then we have serious challenges.”
Fortunately, Lum said the lending market had not been heavily impacted by the recent floods, only in minor areas around securities.
“Questions on valuations and further checks on securities like major centres such as LMI offices in Queensland expecting delays all lead back to your team and how you can communicate with your client,” he said.
With the industry constantly evolving, Lum said brokers needed to remember it was a marathon, not a sprint.
“No matter the stressor, I think how we handle and process is important. Every six weeks I take a mandatory four days offline (I also mandate this for my team) and add something to look forward to in this break for myself, whether it’s an adventure, learning course, etc.,” he said.
“The whole idea of this is to get the flow right for a long career in finance and not a short, sharp spike.”
