Just over half of all mortgages in Australia come through the broker channel, however, the chief executive of a top franchise brokerage says broker market share is likely to rise to 70% over the next five to ten years.
Patrick Marion, the chief executive of Citiwide Homeloans, says increased consumer confidence is driving demand.
“There is a lot more acceptance of mortgage brokers in Australia today,” he told Australian Broker.
“I started mortgage broking in 1988 when the broking industry was unheard of so I have seen consumer attitudes change over the years. We are seeing and reading about less and less of the shonky brokers that worked in the industry prior to the GFC. This has definitely enhanced consumer confidence about mortgage broking.
“I just have to look at the growth [in Citiwide] this past year, which was about 30%. Consumers are becoming more aware of mortgage brokers and more confident to use one.”
Marion, who recently attended a conference in the US, says mortgage brokers are already seeing those levels of market share.
“I was in the US last month for a conference which was attended by mortgage brokers from America and globally and I had a chance to talk to them and we can draw a lot of parallels to the Australian market – so there is no reason why consumers won’t drive demand for brokers in Australia like it has done overseas.”
However, as demand for mortgage brokers increases, Marion says the industry is faced with the need to attract more new brokers into the industry. But in order to attract – and retain – new talent, he says it is important to identify what makes a good broker.
“First we have to understand what makes a good broker. In my experience, the number one skills a broker needs are to have good sales skills, which not everyone has. You may have worked in a bank but that doesn’t mean you could be a mortgage broker,” he told Australian Broker.
“Secondly, you need to have the mindset of a self-employed person. You are working different hours, weekends, night and you need that mindset. When you’ve been in a job for a long time as a PAYG then it can be difficult to move to that.
“The last one is resilience to succeed.”
Marion says the industry also needs to take a more proactive approach in educating potential brokers.
“Citiwide advertises for brokers all the time as a franchise and we get a lot of enquiries from people wanting to join the industry. We do advertise that mortgage broking is flexible and gives you the ability to have a good work/life balance, but I find that many people have a misconception that mortgage broking isn’t a full-time job,” he told Australian Broker.
“We get a lot of applicants who want to come in and make a gentle transition into mortgage broking. They think they can work their full-time job during the day and do mortgage broking at night or on the weekend. I think there needs to be more education around this.”
