As more and more of the mortgage process moves online, are brokers’ days numbered?
As more and more of the mortgage process moves online, are brokers’ days numbered?
Jason Henneberry- President, tech and partner integrations- Tango Financial
“When asked how Amazon keeps ahead of trends in online selling, Jeff Bezos said they ‘focus on what will never change.’ For online retail, people will always want quick and relevant search results, a convenient purchase process, and ultra-fast delivery.
In the mortgage space, our constants are that homeowners value convenience, choice and quality advice. Mortgage brokers play an important role by providing Canadians with choice and flexibility and by helping consumers navigate the complexities of financing. As long as we don’t lose sight of these never-changing constants, our channel will always find ways to adapt and meet its challenges.”
Melanie McLister -Co-founder and broker of record -intelliMortgage
“The broker channel will never be totally obsolete; it will just get smaller. There will always be some lenders wanting to source business through brokers. And there will always be some clients wanting mortgage advice from independent, human mortgage professionals.
That said, in time, the number of online direct-to-consumer originations will eventually tower above the number of commissioned broker/banker originations. Those most insulated from this shift will be non-prime and niche brokers. Tech-driven brokerages and DTC lenders will pick almost all the low-hanging fruit – AAA clients – within five to 10 years.”
James Laird -President -CanWise Financial
“The broker channel is a third-party origination source for lenders across the country. Our channel provides value by offering a service to consumers while delivering a mortgage to our lending partners. In the coming years, technology will be involved in every step of the process, from initial online research through to close.
Our channel must embrace this new world so that we continue to be an efficient source of mortgage volume compared to branch mobile specialists and direct-to-consumer models. To do this, we must deliver the combination of technology and human touch that consumers demand.”
