How can brokers compete against automated decision engines?
When it comes to home lending, the future is digital – but according to Nano, the future is already here.
In response to a recent MPA article in which 1st Street Financial mortgage and financial advisor Greg Bloom spoke about a future “where you plug your bank statements in and you get approved on the spot,” Nano co-founder and CEO Andrew Walker commented, “It’s interesting to note that there is still a belief that end-to-end digital mortgage applications and approvals are still 15 years or more away.”
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“The future is not 15 years away, it’s now,” he said. “Nano has already achieved full end-to-end automation through its digital mortgage platform.”
He went on to explain that Nano’s fully automated onboarding process “radically speeds up the application time and revolutionises the customer experience.”
“Last week we unconditionally approved a loan in under 10 minutes and had received fully signed and returned documents from another customer in under 24 hours,” he said. “This is the future of home loans, it exists today.
“Nano’s digital home loan shines a spotlight on how outdated both traditional lenders and new and emerging rivals are. They remain inhibited by incumbent, outdated systems, and yesterday’s processes, offering just an online application – a far step from full end-to-end digital automation.”
It can be easy to see why brokers feel threatened in a market of tech disruptors and blown-out turnaround times – something Loan Market has addressed in its latest choice of CRM.
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According to executive chairman Sam White, the CRM enables brokers to be the differentiator – the game changing component in a world where digital offers convenience, but not necessarily the nuances that a human relationship can bring.
Rather than seeing digitisation as being a threat to mortgage brokers, White believes it is actually a good thing because it frees up more time for the broker to focus on advising the client.
“It takes time out of having to collect information,” he told MPA. “The more that we can get information digitised, the easier it’s going to be for brokers to find out what the right solutions are.”
In response to the emergence of fully automated digital loans, White said,
“Those automated decision engines by definition are fairly narrow in their ability to say yes or no to customers. They only say yes in a small number of cases at the moment.”
According to Nectar Mortgages national business manager – broker brands Andrew Stevens, brokers should be cautious not to lose customers through a lack of ongoing communication.
“Banks, comparison sites and fintech lenders are fighting to purchase the mind space of your customer and are offering easy solutions at the click of a button,” he said. “If you are not actively working on building your personal brand and adding value to your database, you will be easy forgotten.”
He said database marketing was one of many opportunities that brokers should leverage in the current environment in order to generate leads and protect against clawback – an issue that has proved especially rife in today’s cashback culture.
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To do this, Stevens suggested investing in an automated database marketing service.
“At Nectar Broker Brands, we market in the broker’s brand to their book as a part of our overall support, however, many aggregators offer an off the shelf option for under $300 per month,” he said. He added that brokers could also “utilise social media and audio-conferencing apps” in order to educate their database and “learn what offers are in market” for their customers.
Kate McIntyre is an online writer for Mortgage Professional Australia. She has a wealth of experience as a storyteller and journalist for a range of leading media outlets, particularly in real estate, property investing and finance. She loves uncovering the heart behind every story and aims to inspire others through the artful simplicity of well-written words.Email | LinkedIn
