2. Loan Market Bayside

Borrowers are looking for more than just a good rate; they want brokers who can offer an education

According to Loan Market Bayside’s Josh Bartlett, clients are thirsty for knowledge. They aren’t turning to brokers just to talk about which lender has the best interest rate. They want to know what’s going to happen when they’re in that loan product and how it’s going to work for them, he says.

If a client comes to him looking to refinance, it could be that they’re experiencing financial stress. It’s all about assessing the situation so brokers can provide them with what they’re really asking for: an education.

With 11 years of experience as a personal trainer under his belt, Bartlett is an expert when it comes to analysing people and understanding their psychology. It’s important not to project one’s own thoughts or opinions on others as a broker, he says. “Figure out who they are and how they live their lives.”

One way his brokerage does this is by having clients fill out their living expenses on their own first so they can have a more thorough conversation about it once they come in for an appointment.

When Bartlett began broking seven years ago, the landscape was a lot less chaotic. Bank policies and pre-approval criteria were consistent for extended periods of time. Today, clients often find themselves in limbo, where they may be preapproved by a lender one week and rejected a couple of weeks’ later, putting a huge amount of pressure on brokers to problem-solve on the fly and find quick solutions. To keep clients abreast of the constant changes, Bartlett’s team send regular updates to pre-approved clients via text messages.

To make the loan journey smoother and easier on clients and staff, Bartlett’s team are constantly training. They do 20-minute training updates almost daily, in which they exchange what they learned today that they didn’t know before. “One person can’t know everything, but if one person notices something different, they can share that knowledge with the rest of us,” Bartlett says.

They are also avid listeners of the Loan Market compliance podcast, of which there are now eight episodes.

Bartlett believes that the more educated brokers are, the more they’ll embrace the changes and come out on top. “Our business is strengthened because we’re constantly learning,” he says.