Australian Broker's Spotlight Series — where we highlight standout professionals in Australia's mortgage broking and finance industries — is back.
In a second installment, Australian Broker caught up with Scott Bament (pictured above center with his team.) Bament is a franchise owner of Mortgage Choice in Morphett Vale, Adelaide, and a seasoned broker whose journey from advertising sales to industry leadership is anything but typical.
With more than two-and-a-half decades in Australia's mortgage broking business, and expertise spanning both residential and commercial lending, Bament has built a business that thrives on adaptability and deep client trust.
We sat down with Bament to hear more about best practices he follows, his insights on Australia’s loan market as 2026 takes shape and how he navigates uncertain times.
The broker's approach is refreshingly simple: listen first, act with integrity and put clients’ needs ahead of business. “Give advice that’s right for the borrower, even if it doesn’t mean business for you,” Bament told Australian Broker. “You’ll be repaid ten times over if you do the right thing for the right reasons.”
The following interview has been edited for grammar and clarity.
SB: For clients, I would say, just listen and give advice based on what's right for the borrower, even if it doesn't mean business for you. You will be repaid 10 times over if you do the right thing for the right reasons. So be free with your knowledge and give information openly and stay patient. Borrowers don't do this every day like brokers do, and sometimes they ask silly questions. But that's ok. Also be firm with clients that they need to tell you everything or you can't help them. There is nothing worse than finding something out from the lender that the client didn't tell you.
For lenders, I would say, be respectful and stay calm. Ask for help only when you really need it, not on everything. And take the time to get to know your BDMs. They are the ones who will go to bat for you when it counts. And if you need to say something bad to an assessor, hang up the phone first.
SB: We are still seeing strong activity and I believe that will continue throughout 2026 and into 2027. It is hard for first-time homebuyers, or lower income earners, to get in at the moment since servicing is tight and loan sizes are larger. So at the moment, there's more inquiries and less qualifying, but higher loan amounts being settled. Our firm is on track to settle more this financial year than last year.
SB: You just need to do what you need to do. What-ifs mean you may never do anything. The only thing worse than making a wrong decision is making no decision. So be cautious; do your homework. And make sure you do what you can to protect yourself and your clients. And only worry about the things you can control.
SB: Not sure if this is a South Australia only thing, but we are noticing agents really pushing unconditional offers, wanting to remove all clauses, including finance. A lot of silent auctions as well, best-offer-by bids. For these reasons, there are a lot of bridging loans going through, and inquiries for subject-to-sale offers just won't cut it.
