There is a new rate site in town and -- brace yourself, brokers – this one was created by one of your fellow brokers. Still, its founder doesn’t believe industry players should feel threatened.
There is a new rate site in town and -- brace yourself, brokers – this one was created by one of your fellow brokers. Still, its founder doesn’t believe industry players should feel threatened.
“Professional brokers who add value and put their client’s needs first will never be threatened by mortgage comparison sites,” Rob McLister, founder of RateSpy.com told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “This is about saving Canadians money on their single biggest debt, by creating an open, centralized rate market.”
RateSpy.com currently contains almost 3,000 rates is one of its main advantages over competing rate sites, such as RateHub.com, according to McLister.
“RateSpy’s #1 edge is data; it has more rates from more lenders than most other mortgage comparison sites combined,” McLister said. “The more choices consumers have, the higher the probability they’ll find a better deal. Some of the mortgages on the site are from lenders that no one else tracks, especially small credit unions.”
Another advantage is its no-fee approach. Currently, the site is supported by ads and, eventually, brokers and lenders can add their logo and an <Apply Now> link to their website – for a flat fee.
“We don’t create economic hurdles for lenders and brokers to participate; there is no $55 per lead fee like some sites, no $7.50 per click fee and so on,” McLister said. “We simply want good, honest, experienced mortgage professionals who deliver value and efficient service to consumers.”
And one last key differentiator is its community aspect.
“There is the community aspect: If a consumer finds a great deal, they can easily share it with others in RateSpy’s message forums,” McLister explained. “And if they have questions, the community can answer them in an unbiased fashion.”
As for how the rates are amalgamated, McLister held his hand close to his chest.
“That’s the secret sauce. It’s taken us three years to refine the data collection process and build the database, which contains over 2,900 rates,” McLister said. “Suffice to say, we have a lot of computer assistance.”
