Your Property Success | *Mortgage Broker: Should I get one?
Your Property Success is an online step-by-step framework that helps homeowners and investors buy the right property at the right price. Visit for more.
17326
page-template-default,page,page-id-17326,inf_infusionsoft,ajax_fade,page_not_loaded,,qode-title-hidden,qode-child-theme-ver-1.0.0,qode-theme-ver-16.6,qode-theme-bridge,wpb-js-composer js-comp-ver-5.5.1,vc_responsive

Mortgage Broker: Should I Get One?

JaneBlueCircle
About the author
Jane Slack-Smith has been named one of the Top 10 Property Experts in Australia by Money Magazine, one of the Top 4 Financial Influencers by Qantas and been awarded the Australia’s Mortgage Broker of the Year twice.

“It is important to have a mortgage broker that understands your goals and your property investing strategy. They should be willing to work with you for the long term.”

A mortgage broker is one of the most important people you will work with during the property buying process.

Quite simply they save you time and money.

So it’s crucial you select a mortgage broker you have full confidence in.

Because to set yourself up for success, you need to get your finance strategy right from day one.

This will significantly affect your future purchases.

A mortgage broker is one of the most important people you will work with during the property buying process.

Nearly 60% of Australians use a mortgage broker for their lending needs. A good mortgage broker will stay up to date with changing policies and special offers so they can provide their clients with the best solutions in the short and long term.

Ultimately, the mortgage broker’s role is to simplify the process of buying a property.

Your home loan is usually your largest financial commitment.

Rising and falling interest rates can have a big impact on how much you pay back each month and how much you pay in interest over the life of the loan.

So having the right loan features can help maximise your financial returns and provide you with greater leverage to build a high-performing property investment portfolio.

The National Consumer Credit Act 2011 has placed stricter requirements on mortgage brokers and lenders to provide their clients with the most appropriate financial structure for their personal needs.

These requirements have never been higher and recent changes have made accessing funds increasingly difficult.

Before choosing a mortgage broker, make sure you do your homework. Familiarise yourself with the process and terminology used in mortgage lending. The mortgage broker you choose should conduct a detailed analysis of your circumstances to accurately assess your capacity to service a loan.

Then, they will consider a large suite of lenders for you and recommend a loan that meets your unique needs.

After this, they should compile your application with any support documents required and submit it to the selected lender.

A good mortgage broker will liaise with your solicitor, accountant and real estate agent to make sure that you have a seamless experience.

Like all professions, no two mortgage brokers are the same.

Hence, what you receive from brokers may vary. Some brokers specialise in first home owners, while others will specialise in investors, commercial properties or even geographically (only service residents in a particular town).

Some brokers may provide you with a printout of loan comparisons so you can view monthly repayments and total repayment amounts over the length of various loans. Other brokers may provide you with a more extensive short-term and long-term lending assessment.

Remember, two brokers may offer you what looks the same but their reasons may be very different.

One may plug in your income and expenses to sort loans by the cheapest interest rate.

However, the other may want to minimise your exposure to lenders with the same mortgage insurer and get you a loan product that you can split at a later stage so you can unlock equity to buy the next property.

Often brokers need to think two or even three steps ahead to make sure your initial loan works for both your short-term needs and future plans.

You need to understand who you are working with and what they deliver.

Don’t be surprised if your mortgage broker charges you a professional advice fee. This has become more and more common and in light of industry remuneration recommendations this could become the norm.

In the past, mortgage brokers were solely paid by commissions for introducing clients to lenders.

The banks, many years ago, decided to split this with about 60% being paid upfront and the rest over the life of the loan.

The lenders asked for this change as a way of ensuring that brokers recommended loans that were in the long-term interest of the borrower.

Sometimes, brokers offer additional fee-based services such as education, financial planning or resources to find a property.

A good, professional mortgage broker can be the cornerstone of your property portfolio’s growth.

As an additional service, some mortgage brokers won’t just offer you an immediate financial structure but they will also provide options to leverage and grow your portfolio into the future.

Extra costs are you usually associated with this support.

Questions to ask a broker

1. What are your qualifications and what professional association are you a member of?

2. What do you charge for your services?

3. What is your specialty?

4. Do you deal with investors often?

5. What professional indemnity insurance do you carry?

6. Will you provide me with a credit quote upfront outlining any fees and ongoing costs I might incur?

7. Will you declare any commissions you earn from referring me to a lender?

8. What can I expect from you in terms of assistance with a loan application?

9. Do you have testimonials from satisfied customers?

10. Can you refer me to other trusted professionals such as conveyancers or valuers?

11. Do you offer any additional services or resources to assist with growing a property portfolio?

12. How long should the application process take?

13. What is your privacy policy and how do you protect my information?

Conclusion

It’s extremely important to have a mortgage broker that understands your short- and long-term goals, as well as your property investment strategy.

They should be someone who is willing to work with you in the long run.

It’s extremely beneficial for your investing journey to have the right people in your corner.

So always do your due diligence to hire the best and most trusted professionals.

Whenever you’re ready… here are 3 ways I can help you right now:

Your Portfolio Building Blueprint Book

The 7 simple steps to rapidly grow your portfolio with absolute confidence & minimal risk.

Free book download here

 

Location Masterclass Online

The software/training combination to find you the right property, in the right location, in the shortest possible time.

Learn more

 

Mentoring With Jane

Apply to be personally mentored by one of Australia’s foremost property experts.

Learn more