The brokerage of longtime Top 100 Broker Anthony Alabakov is now in its third stage of evolution as he moves towards a holistic finance offering
The brokerage of longtime Top 100 Broker Anthony Alabakov is now in its third stage of evolution as he moves towards a holistic finance offering
Even with a great broker at the helm, great businesses don’t emerge overnight. Melbourne broker Anthony Alabakov first entered MPA’s Top 100 in 2013, and has since been determinedly moving up the rankings to 13th place. His brokerage, My Mortgage Freedom, has undergone a number of changes since he set it up in 2011 in order to become the business it is today.
“Back in 2011, we went fairly hard on online marketing and having a branded product out there in the market,” Alabakov says. He’d previously worked for his father’s business, Sharp Finance, which also offered accounting and financial planning, but My Mortgage Freedom was a mortgagebroking- focused operation, at first with just Alabakov and brokers Sean Murphy and Stephanie Carello.
In the search for leads, Alabakov invested heavily in a website. “We did a lot of data analytics and looking out there to see what other companies are doing – not so much in the finance field, but in other industries,” he says. “We find mortgage broking is a little bit behind the eight-ball when it comes to technology.”
Focusing on the online channels brought in 1,500 active clients and provided a learning experience for the young brokerage, but didn’t necessarily bring in the right clients. “Not only are they very rate-conscious,” , Alabakov says, “but there are a few things that make them less viable than seeing clients face-to-face.”
Dealing with clients on the phone made the entire process longer, and Alabakov found it was sometimes difficult to acquire important documents. Even after the loan was completed, such clients “generally wouldn’t stick around; we find that the runoff is quite high on the book, and it’s harder to create a relationship”.
The wealth accumulators
My Mortgage Freedom still has an online brand, but now it’s coupled with a more holistic, advisory approach. Alabakov’s team now includes six other brokers and four ‘customer experience managers’ who provide support. The clients have also changed; they’re predominantly what Alabakov describes as ‘wealth accumulators’: “couples, individuals in their 30s or 40s, accumulating wealth or starting in business. Yes, there is an investment side of things, and a lot of [property] investors there, but in general I’d say wealth accumulators.”
As clients, wealth accumulators tend to be time-poor, Alabakov explains – they want the broker to do the work for them and need to trust that broker to do it well. That trust is helped by many clients coming through referrals, often from within the brokerage. “A lot of our team members are in their late 20s and early 30s, so there’s a lot of good connections and relationships with that clientele.”
Of the seven brokers at My Mortgage Freedom, all have different niches. Alabakov handles larger transactions, Sean Murphy deals with non-conforming and SMSF, and other brokers deal with home loans, investment loans, off-the-plan, nonresidents and annual reviews for existing clients. When it comes to client enquiries, “if they ask for me, I’ll definitely help them,” Alabakov says, “but if it’s a general enquiry, someone ringing through or online, we’d like to think we can spread the load with everyone”.
Three of My Mortgage Freedom’s brokers actually started as customer experience managers, and Alabakov is determined to develop his team further: “I don’t want it to be all about me with My Mortgage Freedom.
I maybe could have done better volume if I wanted to, but I would really rather have a better balance within the business.”
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A comprehensive offering
In 2016, My Mortgage Freedom began its third stage of transformation, taking on a full-time financial planner. Alabakov himself has qualified as a financial planner but doesn’t practise. “I know the fundamentals of it all,” he says, “so it helps me in discussions with clients, but I don’t practise that on a daily basis; I focus on mortgages.”
Financial planning is now fully integrated into the brokerage’s process. “Every client that comes through,” Alabakov says, “we sit down with and speak to them about their mortgage, then they sit down and talk our full-time financial planner and para-planner, going through insurance, wealth creation, superannuation – all of those other add-ons. It’s worked really well, and it’s an exciting part of the business and something that creates a lot of value.”
With the brokerage’s wealth accumulator clients, planning is a natural fit, and Alabakov is looking to expand his services even further. “Understanding our client base and what they require,” he says, “we are this year looking to move into real estate as well, providing an advocacy service.”
A multifaceted business needs a management structure that reflects it, and whilst Alabakov isn’t looking to hire, he is hoping to create a corporate structure with certain people responsible for certain divisions. He doesn’t see himself moving into management full-time, however.
“I couldn’t,” he says. “I tick, writing loans, and that’s what I enjoy doing … I may slip down the rankings over time because I’m not doing as much, but I just want to have a sustainable business where everyone enjoys coming to work, and we’re helping as many clients as possible and building something special.”
Even with a great broker at the helm, great businesses don’t emerge overnight. Melbourne broker Anthony Alabakov first entered MPA’s Top 100 in 2013, and has since been determinedly moving up the rankings to 13th place. His brokerage, My Mortgage Freedom, has undergone a number of changes since he set it up in 2011 in order to become the business it is today.
“Back in 2011, we went fairly hard on online marketing and having a branded product out there in the market,” Alabakov says. He’d previously worked for his father’s business, Sharp Finance, which also offered accounting and financial planning, but My Mortgage Freedom was a mortgagebroking- focused operation, at first with just Alabakov and brokers Sean Murphy and Stephanie Carello.
In the search for leads, Alabakov invested heavily in a website. “We did a lot of data analytics and looking out there to see what other companies are doing – not so much in the finance field, but in other industries,” he says. “We find mortgage broking is a little bit behind the eight-ball when it comes to technology.”
Focusing on the online channels brought in 1,500 active clients and provided a learning experience for the young brokerage, but didn’t necessarily bring in the right clients. “Not only are they very rate-conscious,” , Alabakov says, “but there are a few things that make them less viable than seeing clients face-to-face.”
Dealing with clients on the phone made the entire process longer, and Alabakov found it was sometimes difficult to acquire important documents. Even after the loan was completed, such clients “generally wouldn’t stick around; we find that the runoff is quite high on the book, and it’s harder to create a relationship”.
The wealth accumulators
My Mortgage Freedom still has an online brand, but now it’s coupled with a more holistic, advisory approach. Alabakov’s team now includes six other brokers and four ‘customer experience managers’ who provide support. The clients have also changed; they’re predominantly what Alabakov describes as ‘wealth accumulators’: “couples, individuals in their 30s or 40s, accumulating wealth or starting in business. Yes, there is an investment side of things, and a lot of [property] investors there, but in general I’d say wealth accumulators.”
As clients, wealth accumulators tend to be time-poor, Alabakov explains – they want the broker to do the work for them and need to trust that broker to do it well. That trust is helped by many clients coming through referrals, often from within the brokerage. “A lot of our team members are in their late 20s and early 30s, so there’s a lot of good connections and relationships with that clientele.”
MY MORTGAGE FREEDOM’S WEBSITE STRATEGY
Given its initial focus on the internet for lead generation, My Mortgage Freedom has a website that’s quite unlike that of most brokerages. After clicking an option on the home screen, such as ‘Investment Loan’, visitors are presented with options – in this case, ‘refinance’ or ‘purchase’. Depending on their selection, they’ll then be offered further options – those who click ‘refinance’ can pick between ‘I want a lower interest rate’ and ‘Equity release’. Visitors are then directed to a short web page with only the most relevant information on it, along with a video featuring one of My Mortgage Freedom’s brokers. They can then fill in a form to be contacted by one of the team. Alabakov says he was inspired by looking at the websites of the biggest companies outside finance, including Telstra, to see how they guide visitors through their websites.
Given its initial focus on the internet for lead generation, My Mortgage Freedom has a website that’s quite unlike that of most brokerages. After clicking an option on the home screen, such as ‘Investment Loan’, visitors are presented with options – in this case, ‘refinance’ or ‘purchase’. Depending on their selection, they’ll then be offered further options – those who click ‘refinance’ can pick between ‘I want a lower interest rate’ and ‘Equity release’. Visitors are then directed to a short web page with only the most relevant information on it, along with a video featuring one of My Mortgage Freedom’s brokers. They can then fill in a form to be contacted by one of the team. Alabakov says he was inspired by looking at the websites of the biggest companies outside finance, including Telstra, to see how they guide visitors through their websites.
Of the seven brokers at My Mortgage Freedom, all have different niches. Alabakov handles larger transactions, Sean Murphy deals with non-conforming and SMSF, and other brokers deal with home loans, investment loans, off-the-plan, nonresidents and annual reviews for existing clients. When it comes to client enquiries, “if they ask for me, I’ll definitely help them,” Alabakov says, “but if it’s a general enquiry, someone ringing through or online, we’d like to think we can spread the load with everyone”.
Three of My Mortgage Freedom’s brokers actually started as customer experience managers, and Alabakov is determined to develop his team further: “I don’t want it to be all about me with My Mortgage Freedom.
I maybe could have done better volume if I wanted to, but I would really rather have a better balance within the business.”
A comprehensive offeringIn 2016, My Mortgage Freedom began its third stage of transformation, taking on a full-time financial planner. Alabakov himself has qualified as a financial planner but doesn’t practise. “I know the fundamentals of it all,” he says, “so it helps me in discussions with clients, but I don’t practise that on a daily basis; I focus on mortgages.”
Financial planning is now fully integrated into the brokerage’s process. “Every client that comes through,” Alabakov says, “we sit down with and speak to them about their mortgage, then they sit down and talk our full-time financial planner and para-planner, going through insurance, wealth creation, superannuation – all of those other add-ons. It’s worked really well, and it’s an exciting part of the business and something that creates a lot of value.”
With the brokerage’s wealth accumulator clients, planning is a natural fit, and Alabakov is looking to expand his services even further. “Understanding our client base and what they require,” he says, “we are this year looking to move into real estate as well, providing an advocacy service.”
A multifaceted business needs a management structure that reflects it, and whilst Alabakov isn’t looking to hire, he is hoping to create a corporate structure with certain people responsible for certain divisions. He doesn’t see himself moving into management full-time, however.
“I couldn’t,” he says. “I tick, writing loans, and that’s what I enjoy doing … I may slip down the rankings over time because I’m not doing as much, but I just want to have a sustainable business where everyone enjoys coming to work, and we’re helping as many clients as possible and building something special.”
