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The general manager of lending at Yellow Brick Road has stressed the growing importance of diversification in the changing mortgage landscape.
Speaking to The Adviser, YBR general manager – lending Andrew Rasby highlighted that mortgage lending has become “more challenging” in light of recent regulatory and credit policy appetite changes.
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As such, he explained that it is important for brokers entering the mortgage market to consider how to expand their income streams.
“Taking care of a customer and referring them to financial planning [company] is a fantastic way to diversify your income source,” he said.
“I think the broking industry has undergone and is undergoing a lot of changes. Meeting all of the customer's needs and therefore driving revenue out of meeting a customer’s needs is just essential.
“If a broker was just selling home loans, then they need to look at ways to adapt and evolve quickly, otherwise they have the potential to be left behind in today's market.”
Mr Rasby added that it is generally “very difficult” to source financial planning leads, as customers often do not know that they have unmet financial planning needs, and therefore often won’t proactively seek a referral.
“They won't come to us, we need to find them. So, the best way to get a financial planning referral is off a trusted home loan transaction,” he said.
“It's the best place to start a financial planning business from a referral perspective, through a trusted relationship with someone who is helping you build your financial future through making a transaction in your life such as a home loan.”
According to Mr Rasby, when bringing financial planning into the mix through a referral partnership, it is imperative to ensure that they are a “like-minded professional” in order for customer service to remain “seamless and exceptional” throughout the entire process.
Mr Rasby offered three top tips on how to make financial planning a successful value-add for a brokerage:
• Trust and know the person you're referring to, and be comfortable referring customers to them;
• When dealing with a customer, build it into the process to introduce financial planning; and
• Follow up and make sure that the customer's experience with the planner was what you would have expected for your customer.
“You've got to trust each other to treat your customer in the same way that you want them to be treated,” he concluded.
[Related: Client strike rate ‘much higher’ with financial advice]
