The Mortgage & Finance Association highlights trends and opportunities for the mortgage and finance broking industry in its latest six monthly report
This article was produced in partnership with the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia
Anja Pannek is chief executive officer of the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia.
Mortgage and finance brokers have a growing role in the lending landscape as illustrated by the latest industry statistics released by the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA).
Released twice a year, for the six-month periods ending 31 March and 30 September, the Industry Intelligence Service is the most comprehensive source of data on the Australian mortgage and finance broking industry available.
The MFAA recently published the latest edition of the report which sheds light on trends and opportunities for the mortgage and finance broking industry. The report covered the period October 2021 – March 2022 and showed that, with a broker population at a record high of 18,585, there are more brokers helping more Australians with their home loans requirements than ever before.
“In just eight years mortgage brokers have gone from facilitating half of all home loans in 2014 to more than two in three home loans in 2022. The steady growth in the market share of mortgage brokers is evidence of a strong, valued and proven service offering to homebuyers,” says MFAA chief executive officer Anja Pannek.
But it’s not just the market share of mortgage brokers that stood out in the report.
According to Pannek, the number of mortgage brokers diversifying their service offering to clients to include commercial loans has also been steadily increasing over recent years. Commercial lending covers a spectrum of financing options including commercial property, machinery and equipment, vehicles, invoice financing and business lending.
During the October 2021 – March 2022 period close to 5,400 mortgage brokers also wrote loans in the commercial space, the highest on record and a 12.5 percentage point increase from five years ago. The value of the commercial lending loan book written through mortgage brokers has more than doubled to reach $66.71bn in the October 2021 – March 2022 period.
“One of the things I’ve heard many times from brokers over the years is the pride and satisfaction they feel from helping their customers’ home ownership dreams come true, and this same feeling of helping people succeed can also be found in supporting customers with their business lending needs.”
“Diversification can benefit mortgage broking businesses in many ways. It supports customer retention through providing additional touchpoint opportunities, can provide additional referral opportunities and help to strengthen relationships. It also provides mortgage broking businesses with protection should the home loan market experience changes,” says Pannek.
“Many mortgage brokers already have business customers, particularly small business owners, as customers giving them an existing base to start from if they choose to expand into commercial lending,” says Pannek.
Pannek says it’s important for brokers to be well prepared when starting to write their first commercial loans and seek out professional development and expert resources.
“We know that for many mortgage brokers, commercial broking can seem daunting due to the different types of information and documentation needed but aggregators, lenders and, of course, the MFAA are here to help brokers get started,” says Pannek.
The MFAA is actively supporting their members looking to diversify their business, through resources like social media toolkits, ebooks, webinars and workshops. Their latest workshop is running across the country this month and gives brokers the fundamentals to branch into commercial lending.
Pannek says that the IIS survey highlights the continued customer focus of the industry, with brokers at the forefront in finding lending solutions for Australian homebuyers and business owners.
Anja Pannek joined the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) as Chief Executive Officer in September 2022.
Anja is an experienced leader in financial services with over 20 years’ experience in the sector, and has a proven track record of leading successful businesses within the third-party channel including aggregator businesses and mortgage distribution for major financial services firms.
Prior to joining the MFAA, Anja was CEO of PLAN Australia and she has a proven track record of leading successful businesses within the third-party channel. She was CFO of NAB’s Personal Banking division for several years and has also held leadership roles at Loan Market Group, Advantedge Financial Services and Challenger Limited.
Anja thrives in complex and uncertain environments and through her vast experience in financial services, she has an exceptionally strong understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the Australian mortgage and finance broking industry.
