Help find who's the best in the business
The New Zealand Mortgage Awards showcase the best in the business, and it’s now time to nominate the people who are setting the standard for the industry.
Link Financial Group is the newest award sponsor, sponsoring the BDM of the Year (Banks, Non-Banks, Aggregators) Award.
The 2024 New Zealand Mortgage Awards will be celebrated at the Auckland War Memorial Museum on April 11, 2024, starting at 6.30pm.
Nominations close on December 1 and we’re casting the net wide to ensure that those who deserve to be recognised are given the opportunity to win.
Ascend Financial Services financial adviser Ben Mune (pictured above) said that as people society tended to follow one another, making decisions based on what others recommended, winning an award provided “social proof” of a person or company’s achievements.
At the 2023 awards, Ascend Financial Services received the Bluestone New Brokerage of the Year Award, which Mune said provided additional credibility, assisting his business in gaining the trust of new clients.
“Winning an award is often an automatic decision-maker for potential clients … it does a lot of the sales part of the job, builds trust and creates conversation which leads to activity and curiosity,” Mune said.
“It basically removes any doubt people may have about entering into a service arrangement with someone new.”
Mune said nominating peers and colleagues, whether they be mortgage advisers, BDMs, lenders or brokerages, provided the nominees with an opportunity to receive these benefits.
“The more applicants and people involved who care about the result, the more valuable it is to win an award,” he said.
Mune noted that winning the New Brokerage of the Year award had been one of the biggest highlights of his year. It got people talking, prompting those within his personal network to contact him about anything finance-related, he said.
Acknowledging that doing a good job automatically provides leads, Mune said that the award provided “extra reinforcement” for clients to give him the benefit of the doubt and choose to use his services rather than go direct.
“It has made people more comfortable reaching out to me and using my services,” he said.
Although winning an award topped the evening off, Mune said that attending the NZ Mortgage Awards this year provided a great opportunity to meet people in person.
“We do so much of our business over the phone and struggle to fit in catch-ups … it’s good to get everyone together so they can have multiple catch-ups in one go,” he said.
Nominate your picks now
Nominations for the 2024 NZ Mortgage Awards close on Friday, December 1, and can be placed via the NZMAs website.
There are 16 awards categories, including First Mortgage Trust New Adviser of the Year, Pepper Money Adviser of the Year – Residential (new category), Adviser of the Year – Regional and BDM of the Year (Banks, Non-Banks, Aggregators).
Other awards include Avanti Finance Adviser of the Year – Specialist Lending, Prospa Broker of the Year – 6+ Staff, Brokerage of the Year – 1-5 staff and Resimac Home Loans Best Customer Service of an Individual Office.
New award categories this year include Innovator of the Year, Loan Administrator of the Year, Lender of the Year (Major/Non-Major Bank), Non-Bank Lender of the Year, Aggregator of the Year and Regional Brokerage of the Year.
Organised by Key Media and supported by NZ Adviser, award sponsors include Avanti Finance, Finsure New Zealand, First Mortgage Trust, Link Financial Group, Pepper Money, Prospa and Resimac. Basecorp Finance is the associate sponsor.
Please visit the NZMAs website to nominate before December 1.
What did you think of the 2023 NZ Mortgage Awards and how do they benefit the industry? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
