New mortgage brokers should spend at least a year learning inside an established brokerage before going out on their own, according to 1st Street Financial residential, commercial, and asset finance broker Kymberly Rowles (pictured).
“I’d like to see a requirement that new to industry brokers must work in an existing brokerage for a minimum of one year, before being able to hold their own accreditations with banks and lenders,” she said.
Rowles likened the model to an apprenticeship, giving new entrants time to build knowledge under experienced brokers before they hold accreditations in their own name.
Rowles, who has been broking since 2020, said the brokers who attract the most attention are not always the most experienced. She said that gap matters when clients are making some of the biggest financial decisions of their lives.
“Social media is a fantastic tool and has an important place in our industry, but being good at creating content doesn’t automatically make someone a great broker,” she said.
Rowles’ advice to aspiring brokers follows the same line: join a reputable brokerage and, if possible, start as a loan processor or para-broker.
“You’ll learn more in 12 months sitting alongside experienced brokers than you will from any textbook or monthly coffee catchups,” she said.
Rowles moved into broking as COVID-19 hit, while she was on maternity leave with her first child and the corporate state manager role she had planned to return to looked uncertain.
Before broking, she worked for Australia’s largest asset finance aggregator, training 3,000 mortgage brokers to diversify into asset finance. She saw that few brokers were comfortable working across both mortgages and asset finance.
She built her business on covering the full range, from complex commercial transactions to first home and car loans. According to her 1st Street Financial broker profile, she has more than 15 years’ experience in senior financial services roles, holds a Master’s degree in Finance from UTS Business School, and has settled more than 1,000 transactions.
Rowles said the most positive shift in the industry has been more Australians choosing a broker over going directly to a bank, arguing that clients who understand their options get better results.
She added that difficult deals can build the strongest client relationships when they are handled with clear communication and well-managed expectations.
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