Ah, progress. Mortgage brokers grabbed a bigger share of the overall pie this year, according to the CMHC’s annual consumer market report.
Ah, progress.
Mortgage brokers grabbed a bigger share of the overall pie this year, according to the CMHC’s annual consumer market report.
Some 27 per cent of mortgage consumers used a mortgage broker to arrange their mortgage, reads the survey, released late last week. That’s a 4 per cent point rise over last year’s 23 per cent.
“In the past year, brokers have made further inroads among mortgage renewers, with one in five relying on a broker,” reads the report. “Key reasons for using a broker continue to be getting the best rate or deal, and receiving excellent service.”
The online survey was conducted in February and March 2012, and relies on responses from 3,502 recent mortgage consumers – all of them “prime decision makers” undertaking a mortgage transaction within the previous 12 months.
The report also highlights the growing challenge brokers face in prying clients away from their lenders at renewal and for refis.
“Lender loyalty continues to be weakest among first-time buyers, where 59 per cent reported getting their mortgage with the financial institution they were dealing with the most,” writes the author of the CMHC report. “However, there appears to be an increase in lender loyalty among first-time buyers, which has increased from only 47 per cent in 2009.”
While increased use of the Internet for mortgage hunting appears to have helped brokers to expand their market share, they still trail behind lenders in terms of overall client satisfaction.
According to the report, 83 per cent of consumers said they were “satisfied
with their experience” using their lender. That’s slightly higher than the 77 per cent who said the same about their broker.
