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This month we ask: Do your customers see the value in white-label products?
Customers like the white label
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I think so. Choicelend (CL) allows upfront valuations, which for an investor is important. Loan switches/ changes post-settlement are cheap ($100) which is also handy for an investor, as they quite often want to change their loans around (fi x/split, etc.). Interest rates are typically lower than the other lenders too. I don’t have to explain it to my customers. When I compare the interest rate, fees, free upfront valuations and the fact that CL is funded by NAB, they’re usually happy to take my recommendation.
Deanna Ezzy, Trilogy Investment Property Funding, ACT
There’s a definite advantage
They do once they understand it. Their initial fear is: “Is this guy going to be some small lender that’s going to go broke and I’m going to get left with no mortgage?”. But once you sit down and explain to them that it’s funded by a major, but it’s not a product that’s available through any of the branches and it’s a unique product to the broker market, it’s a lot easier. I think if you present it to a borrower and then you show them who the sub-funder is, they’re a lot more confident.
Brian Warner, Finance Partners, SA
It’s a case of horses for courses
It’s not universal; it is a little bit horses for courses. I do definitely have to explain it to them, there’s no two ways about it. Particularly those clients that haven’t had dealings with a smaller institution or dealings with an institution that doesn’t necessarily have a very significant presence, so we do need to explain that quite extensively. But that’s no different from having to explain our recommendations behind any product with any lender due to the regulatory environment at the moment.
Gary Benzan, Loanology, SA
It depends on the customer
I believe clients in general are much better educated now than ever. This came firstly through the education by good brokers to what the market has to offer and how clients can use product features and benefits. Secondly, there is media and information available online that give consumers the option to learn. [However] there is still a considerable portion of consumers who only look to interest rates in their decision where product, loan purpose and so forth should be a consideration.
Tony Schelling, Mortgage Choice, NT
Not really suitable for client’s needs
At the end of the day, I see clients have two or three major needs. One is interest rate or affordability and two is the strategy. Is the product going to suit their overall strategy and objectives? We’ve had white-label in the past but we decided not to use it, because it wasn’t cost-effective for the consumer. As much as it’s being our own brand, we found it not very viable so we didn’t sell it. We gave clients more of a choice and variety in other products out there that can best suit their needs.
Kyle Marshall, Vogue Financial Solutions, QLD
