As specialist recruiters in the mortgage broking space, Platinum People Group can help accounting and financial planning practices launch and grow their mortgage broking team. Our Managing Director has helped guide and advise wealth and accounting businesses for over eight and a half years, and has assisted launching mortgage divisions in over 20 different financial services businesses. He’s also worked with legal firms and real estate agents looking to diversify and offer mortgage services.
If you’re an accounting or financial planning firm looking to launch a broking arm to add further value to your clients, read on to learn how.
Why add a broking arm?
There are a range of reasons you may be looking to offer mortgage broking as part of your business model.
- It’s a great way to add extra value to your customers and provide an end-to-end finance solution.
- It’s an excellent option for businesses looking to expand and grow your business. You can bring on new recruits with different experience of the financial services industry, or train up your existing staff and improve retention.
- It offers an opportunity to generate passive income as you’ll benefit from trail commissions each time you write a loan, and is a great additional revenue stream offering upfront commissions.
Opening a mortgage broking arm is an exciting step to take as a business owner, and we’ve witnessed just how other businesses have achieved it.
How SCM forayed into mortgage broking
Four years ago, Scholten Collins McKissock (SCM) was a successful wealth management practice with a strong base of high net worth clients. But their clients were in an older age bracket, and the team wanted to cater to the next generation. To do this, they decided to offer valuable services for a younger target market: debt and mortgage services to help them buy homes, protect them with insurance, and support them in growing their wealth. This meant opening a mortgage broking arm of the business, and they needed an experienced mortgage broker to get them there.
We worked with SCM to source and place an exceptional mortgage broker named Yjana, who came with experience as a Senior Business Banker and Commercial Banker working at this high level. While Yjana initially helped set things up and develop sustainable processes for the business, the mortgage broking arm of SCM is now complemented by the skills of Commercial Lending Specialist and CEO Steve, loan processor Philippa and mortgage broker Renee. SCM also acquired a mortgage business along its journey, which came with four self-employed brokers and an established loan book.
The mortgage broking division now not only adds value to SCM’s customers, improving the business’ service offering, but it also contributes to a big share of the firm’s overall profit!
Top tips for opening a mortgage broking division
If you’re considering taking a similar route to SCM and expanding your business’ service offering, these are our top tips for opening a mortgage broking division.
Start with why
Ask yourself why this is the right strategy for your business, both now and in the future. It’s important to get clarity on your goals and the reason for adding mortgage broking services to your offering.
Understand your customer’s needs
Talk to your customers by running focus groups, having them fill out a survey, or even just calling a few to get an idea of whether they have a genuine need for mortgage broking services.
Plan your cashflow
You’ll need quite a bit of budget set aside to launch a new business offering, particularly as you’re starting out. List down your upfront and ongoing costs, and measure your expenses against how much income the division could bring in.
Research and join a mortgage aggregator
There are dozens of mortgage aggregators in Australia, and they all have unique differences. It’s essential that you do your research and join one that suits your business’ needs.
Develop a recruitment strategy
If mortgage broking is brand new for your team, you’ll need to bring on someone who has a bounty of knowledge and experience in the industry. Advertising the job via online jobs boards may not yield the type of candidate you’re looking for. Your strategy may need to be actively sourcing someone through your networks, partnering with a successful self-employed broker, or outsourcing to an expert.
Seek support and advice
Finding the right person to launch your mortgage broking division can be a challenge. You may benefit from the support of a business coach in the mortgage industry to help you get established. A specialist like Jason Back of Broker Essentials could support you through coaching and training to help you get off the ground and become successful sooner.
It’s always useful to make connections in the industry and seek advice from others who’ve launched a mortgage division successfully. Consider joining networking groups or searching for connections on LinkedIn for advice and support.
Working with a specialist recruitment agency like Platinum People Group could also give you peace of mind that you’ll find the perfect candidate to help things run smoothly. As we’ve helped many businesses go through the process, we’d be happy to share our advice with you, and partner with you to source the perfect mortgage broker candidate to make it happen. Reach out to our expert recruitment consultants for a free business strategy session to get the ball rolling.
If you’re still not sure about whether this is the right move for you, download a free Opportunity Analysis worksheet to help you assess your options and gain clarity before you make a decision.
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