Facing an constantly changing lending landscape in his first two years, Dylan Beer has made his mark
From the Royal Commission to the Coronavirus lockdown, Dylan Beer has been through a lot in his two years as a mortgage broker.
Like many new-to-industry brokers, Beer has had to grapple with an ever-changing lending environment, tightened credit and customer hardship – but that hasn’t stopped the 2020 Young Gun from making a mark in the profession and settling $21m worth of loans in 12 months.
He spoke with MPA about his journey from banking to broking as well as the highlights and challenges faced along the way.
A change in direction
Beer was no stranger to lending when he became a mortgage broker in early 2018; spending about seven years working for one of the big four in business banking.
“I understood lending principles and knew that I enjoyed working with customers and playing a part in helping their business succeed,” he says.
After taking a sea change and moving south of Sydney to the Wollongong region, Beer found himself working long hours and committing to a daily rail commute – all while being a father to two young kids.
“I was ready for a change,” he says.
“I was looking for something that would give me more flexibility in that regard and I just happened to be speaking with Nick and Nathan who are the directors of the business at The Wealth Connection.”
The directors asked Beer if he wanted to jump on board, and he accepted.
“The business had a really good reputation locally.”
“I knew that if I got into broking, I wanted to be aligned with a group that was focused on providing a premium service and adding value to their customers – and they were just a perfect fit.”
Helping customers is a real highlight
Beer says one of the best things about the role is being able to help his customers through important life events.
“Every day we get to work with some really great people in terms of our clients.”
“Whether it’s a first home or a house that a couple want to buy and raise their kids in, it’s just nice to be able to play a small part in that major event.”
Another thing that gives him huge satisfaction is to receive referrals from existing customers.
“Probably 90% of my customers come through the door in the form of referrals from happy clients. It’s hugely satisfying to know that your service has been so valued by your client that they’ve put their faith in you to help out a colleague or a family member.”
He says being named an MPA Young Gun has been another highlight.
“Being recognised as a 2020 Young Gun just validates the hard work that you’re doing and confirms that you’re on track and doing the right thing by your clients.”
Navigating the sands of change
Starting out as a broker in the lead up to the Royal Commission meant Beer had his work cut out for him.
He says dealing with credit tightening and the uncertainty surrounding the broking industry during this period has been one of the biggest challenges faced so far.
Having to stay on top of frequently changing credit policies in order to provide a premium service to clients was a major part of this challenge, but Beer made sure he was thorough in his approach.
“Now Covid looks like another beast altogether and it looks like it’s going to have a major impact on the economy going forward.”
