Broker Spotlight: Kerry Henry, Aussie Bonds Australia

No – other than dealing with their brokers and clients.

Are brokers really losing out on deposit bond opportunities?

Absolutely and, we’re told, the home loan opportunity as well, because their clients didn’t proceed with the property purchase. Sadly, many brokers have been conditioned into believing that deposit bonds only fit a specific range of property transactions. This is just so far from reality. Brokers who partner with us quickly identify past situations where they have left clients stranded.

I’ve lost track of the number of times some of these stranded clients find us and quickly discover that Aussie Bonds can assist them. Aussie Bonds has been providing the same broad range of deposit bonds since 2007, and it’s unusual that we say ‘no’ to any type of property purchase – residential or commercial.

Also of concern are applicants who have received a quote from their broker and then jumped online to do their own homework, only to find Aussie Bonds and discover they can make substantial savings.

In a recent off-the-plan application, a client saved $2,350 – not a bad outcome for spending a few minutes on the internet!

We also had a mortgage broker come to us about seven months ago for a 54-month term deposit bond for himself, as he couldn’t obtain one via his aggregator. He checked with us twice as to our quote, because he thought we’d made a  mistake. He was able to save $2,100 (on a comparative 48 months).

My message to brokers is simple: Talk to us first. If we say ‘no’, you’ll know that’s it. Plus, you’ll save your clients money and you can add an origination fee as well!

We help brokers get more deals done and make more money.

The Aussie Bonds brand seems to be more visible these days. Why is that?

Since taking charge around 18 months ago, I wanted a stronger focus on the intermediary space, because they are more in control of their clients and Aussie Bonds has all the key ingredients to help. We have the financial strength of QBE Insurance that culminates in our ability to offer a wider array of bond types and solutions, plus QBE’s deposit bonds are the most widely accepted.

Our direct connection with deposit bonds goes way back to the year of origination, 1989. Plus our combined staff skills include 35-plus years in the broader insurance bonding space, banking, mortgage broking, home loan lending and credit. So we have the experience and the knowledge to deliver.

So, yes, we’re making more noise; attending conferences and professional development days; undertaking webinars and broker presentations.

Where is Aussie Bonds at with its plans?

Obviously the market will continue to evolve, but I’d say we’re around 80 per cent there.

On the product side, we’re able to offer the broadest range of deposit bonds in the market. Plus we can issue out to 60 months on all bond categories, and more recently 66 months for Queensland residential property transactions. There’s not much more improvement on the product side.

On the process side, we’ve updated our web-based application and delivery systems, with some more tinkering to come.

Our key focus is on greater public awareness of deposit bonds and working with more brokers. 

What are Aussie Bonds’ biggest challenges?

I’m trying to avoid that old cliché, however I view the two key challenges as opportunities. The first is that it astounds me the percentage of the public, and even some brokers, that hasn’t heard of or knows very little about deposit bonds, despite short-term deposit bonds being available for 26 years and long-term bonds for 14 years.

We’re looking to social media and greater broker education to help bridge that gap.

The second I often ponder over is why some aggregators go to great lengths to promote broad access to a vast array of funders, [to win over] brokers to join their aggregation group or clients to sign up for finance, but limit access to deposit bond providers.

Increasingly, brokers are finding us, mainly by recommendation from their peers, and getting the job done for their clients. We’d prefer to work via all aggregators so they also get their share.

What’s on the horizon for Aussie Bonds?

Continued strong growth, via broader market awareness; increased intermediary partnering; a stronger presence in social media; and, soon, three new insurance bond products for exclusive distribution via our intermediary partners.

I’m enjoying working closely with broker groups keen to discover a whole range of new business opportunities outside of the typical established or off-the-plan residential purchases, including the much-overlooked commercial property sector.

Aussie Bonds has a significant market advantage in this space. Plus, we’re readying ourselves for the pending impact Basel III will have on bank guarantees.

How is Aussie Bonds embracing technology?

We’ve had mobile apps for Apple and Android for more than a year now and have received great feedback. We’ve also added the option of online applications this year. Following a strategic review with key industry players, we’ve set up tailored websites to assist and support our intermediaries: examples are mortgagebrokerdepositbonds.com. au and financebrokerdepositbonds.com.au. We’ve added more content to help brokers understand deposit bonds and identify new business opportunities.

We’ll continue to add useful tools over time. I’ve spent days in the classroom this year learning about social media and we’re working to maximise the Aussie Bonds brand online.

As part of our broader social media plan, in 2016 we’ll do more public and broker webinars, and will be launching depositbonds.tv to better educate the public and invite and reward them to engage with our intermediary partners.

In summary, how can mortgage brokers benefit from Aussie Bonds’ presence in the market?

In a nutshell, the unmatched broad market acceptance of QBE-backed deposit bonds, (indeed some vendors will now only accept QBE deposit bonds); Aussie Bonds’ ability to offer a much wider range of solutions with bonds out to 60-66 months on all residential and commercial property purchases; our determination to get the deal done by exploring all possible options, while remaining within our underwriting guidelines; our competitive pricing; mortgage brokers can add an origination fee in addition to receiving commission, so more income in their pocket; access to all senior staff, including myself, 24/7, less sleep time; all backed up by unequalled support service.

We’re more than happy to be judged on our merits – it keeps us on our toes. Once mortgage brokers team up with Aussie Bonds, they and their clients quickly appreciate the difference we deliver.