How a Mortgage Broker Can Help You
At Mortgage Broker Melbourne, we have lots of online resources to help you buy and sell property. Whether you’re a first homebuyer, someone looking to up- or down-size, or in the market for an investment or holiday property, we’ve got lots of information to help.
But … why you?
Many people wonder what EXACTLY a mortgage broker does. Why would anyone choose a broker over going direct to a home loan lender?
Let’s lift the lid on brokers and let you know what we actually do…
What IS a mortgage broker?
In Australia, a mortgage broker is a person licensed to work as an intermediary between people looking for a home loan and the businesses that sell them (banks, credit unions, or other non-bank lenders).
While everyone knows about the ‘Big 4’ banks and a handful of other lenders, there are actually more than 100 authorised mortgage lenders in Australia, offering close to 1000 different home loan products. Eeeek!
This intimidating and confusing choice is the biggest reason that well over 50% of home loans in Australia are taken out with the help of a mortgage broker.
Put simply, brokers sift through hundreds of loans, trying to find the best options that fit your specific circumstances.
What do mortgage brokers do?
Let’s boil it down. There are the main five things we do for people looking to buy a property.
- Assess your finances: We look at your income, savings, debts, and credit history.
- Explain loan options: We explain different loan types, interest rates, and repayment options available from various lenders.
- Explore loans: We access a large variety of lenders, compare them and find the most suitable options for you. By law, we have to act in your best interests.
- Deal with the lender: We negotiate the terms of your chosen loan, negotiating interest rates, fees, and loan features. You might be surprised what we can do!
- Manage your application and loan: We help complete the loan paperwork and gather required documentation, then guide it through the approval process. We’ll confirm your loan and provide ongoing support.
Regulations
Mortgage Broker Melbourne is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and must comply with strict industry standards and regulations. This includes providing appropriate advice, disclosing commissions and fees, and acting in the best interests of their clients.
How do brokers get paid?
With Mortgage Broker Melbourne, you never ever pay us for our services. Whether it’s meetings, finding a loan, securing the loan, or ongoing help over the life of your mortgage, you will never pay us.
We take fees and ongoing commissions from your chosen lender. And since we can access loans not offered to direct customers, we’ll almost always beat the retail rate lenders charge (and we’ll tell you if we don’t).
Other brokers might ask for a standard fee regardless of what loan they recommend. Some brokers get a higher fee for offering certain premium loans. And sometimes, a broker will charge you a fee directly.
Do brokers assess every loan on the market?
No.
With so many loans available, brokers subscribe to ‘panels’ of loans. A good broker will be able to compare hundreds of loans for you, and will include all the biggest lenders. No broker compares every single loan on the market. Mortgage Broker Melbourne deals with the biggest lenders, and can also access smaller lender products.
If you’ve found a loan you like, talk to us. There’s a good chance we can find you a better deal.
Talk to a broker
Like choosing any service, it pays to shop around. With over 20 years’ experience and thousands of happy clients, we welcome competition. Our personal service and focused, Melbourne-based perspective gives us an edge that our clients love. We bet you’ll come back to Marc and his expert team at Mortgage Broker Melbourne.
Marc has been a professional lender for 28 years. After beginning his career in 1990 with a UK Building Society, he moved to Australia where he held several different retail banking roles. In 1999 it became clear to him that a mortgage broker would eventually become an obvious choice for someone looking for a home loan so he took the plunge and became an independent broker. He hasn’t looked back since!