Robert McLister of RateSpy.com and Intellimortgage is part of this year's Canadian Mortgage Professional's Hot List
Founder
RateSpy.com and Intellimortgage
Few are blazing a trail into digital mortgages like Robert McLister: Not only is he the founder of rate comparison site RateSpy.com, but he also co-founded the online brokerage intelliMortgage with his wife, Melanie. RateSpy.com, which is the only source to list pricing from every Canadian lender that publicly advertises prime mortgage rates, ended the second half of 2017 with 20% year-over-year growth in user traffic.
About a year ago, McLister decided that intelliMortgage would be a digital marketing company first, a technology company second and a mortgage company third. “That decision was a difference-maker,” he says. “You can have the best DIY mortgage experience in Canada, and we think we do, but if few people know it exists, what’s the point?”
So in early 2017, McLister shut down the company to completely retool intelliMortgage.com. The result was a 20% surge in self-directed client applications by the end of the year. “intelliMortgage grew this year by doing what traditional brokers preach against: not meeting clients, not giving one-on-one product recommendations, buying down rates and charging cancellation fees,” he says. “But in doing so, we empowered consumers to find their own best mortgage without bias, avoid pain points in the traditional mortgage process and save thousands.”
FSCO license: M08005031
