Fee-for-service mortgage manager, Vanilla Loans, is certain to divide broker opinion once again following the launch of its website which suggests that brokers that chase commission are "jokers"
The home page - http://www.vanillaloans.com.au/pro/index.html - is dominated by two images - a picture of Batman to represent the 'true broker' - one who charges a fee - and the 'commission chaser' represented by batman's nemesis, 'The Joker'.
According to the website "true brokers oppose the 'lender commission' model because they view payments by lenders as a conflict of interest.
"They refuse to accept sales commission from lenders and opt to charge customers a fee for the service of negotiating a better deal - surely that's what a mortgage broker should do if it is legitimately acting for its customers.
Further on it says "...true brokers are unadulterated professionals, rewarded with self-respect, freedom and control".
The mortgage manager has launched with an introductory rate of 5.19% on its line of credit, term and offset mortgage products and recommends a brokerage fee of between 1% and 1.5% of the loan amount.
Geoff Brieger, the man behind the concept,called on brokers "to come and take a look, get accredited or even look at joining the retail team".
Brieger said the consumer-facing retail website will go live on 1 September.
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Mortgage manager opts for fee-for-service model - In what may be an industry first, new mortgage manager, Vanilla Loans has ditched the commission-based model in favour of a fee-for-service one.