Discussing the claims, Coulson spoke of the success of Home of Choice after just a year of trading and denied knowing which networks were affected by the ban. But he sympathised with the banned firms. “We aren’t one of the four, because we are still recruiting. People don’t deliberately set out to get it wrong. I sincerely hope the four can sort it out, because the industry needs good networks.”
Looking to the future of his network, Coulson revealed it was in talks with six other networks about consolidation and would announce its plans by the end of the year. This news accompanied revised targets the company has set itself for recruiting sellers. The original target of 1,000 sellers by the end of 2008 has now risen to 2,000, with an average of 3.1 sellers per firm. The firm has currently recruited 584 sellers to its network and has a further 320 waiting to transfer over.
Coulson said the network’s success was down to its technology and people. “We have safe, world class and broker-friendly technology and people. Maintaining a positive attitude is key to meeting the challenges in our industry. We’ve bucked trends and our target audience is voting with its feet to be part of the Home of Choice community.”
While predicting the continued success of his network, Coulson stated he believed there would be more specialisation and consolidation, with the numbers of mortgage networks falling to single figures.
