If you have a client who seems to be undecided on whether they should deal with their bank or a mortgage broker, here is a short summary of what some compelling truths are, around this subject.

A mortgage broker acts as a MEDIATOR or a representative between the client and the bank.

Here are some straight-forward questions to present to a client:

a) what if something goes wrong?

b) who will represent you?

c) will you be able to navigate through escalation channels to get something done at the bank?

d) will you be able to successfully negotiate what you want on your own?

e) what if the lender says no?

f) how easy will it be for you to get the deal you want from another bank and on your own?

You may be asking, so how does a broker mediate between the client and the bank and how do I get my clients to understand this?

Lets start here.  It is easy to quickly assess that any individual’s business, is truly like a small rain-drop in an ocean to a bank but not so with a broker’s office. That is because mortgage brokerages generate enormous volumes of business for lenders and therefore with this huge purchasing power, comes privilege.

If for example, an office has 50 representatives, who are actively carrying on in the business of dealing in mortgages. Lets say that each representative has placed 2 million dollars of mortgage business with a particular lender. The brokerage now has a combined volume of 100 million dollars of business with that particular lender. Now that kind of business volume will make anyone sit up and pay attention, agree?

So essentially the high volume of mortgage business, that a brokerage has, for a lender, will secure some real benefits for the client looking for financing:

1) the lender may now pass along additional mortgage rate discounts to those brokerages who have reached a particular sales volume;

2) a large brokerage will immediately receive dedicated focus and attention from individual lenders, for example, dedicated underwriters. A dedicated underwriter means that a submitted mortgage deal is reviewed quickly and this is essential to maintain the service level to the demands of a busy brokerage;

3) access to senior levels of management. When a lender has a particular brokerage that brings in substantial volumes of business, there is an extremely high importance level based upon that business unit and this is a simple formula to understand: high volumes of business demand greater care as the brokerage now has the ability to move business elsewhere if service levels and satisfaction levels are not adequately maintained to satisfy the brokerage. For the client, this means that a difficult situation can be escalated quickly to senior management and issues can be reviewed and approved that an individual client would not easily be able to accomplish on their own.

This article was written by Elizabeth Blair, a Licensed Mortgage Agent with Mortgage Edge in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Elizabeth services mortgage clients primarily in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area. You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785 by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca or you visit her website at: www.missmortgage.ca Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) www.imba.ca Lic # M08005880 / Brokerage Lic # 10680 Head office:: 15 Wertheim Court, Suite 210, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada.