What binds the broker-customer relationship?

There are many reasons why bankers and other professionals make the transition to broking. The opportunity to unlock earnings potential is a major motivator for the move from PAYG to self-employed.

But another enticement to entering broking is the professional and personal reward of educating the community to increase its financial literacy. As any broker knows, being in a position to empower individuals to make informed financial choices can turn an ordinary day at the office into a life memory.

Across LMG, many brokerages are helping the spectrum of borrowers better understand the world of lending so they can make the most-informed decisions in their financial journey.

LMG’s Leading Ladies group – the industry’s pre-eminent female support network – has hosted financial well-being sessions for women. The sessions have focused on budgeting, borrowing and creating plans for the future.

“Brokers develop deep relationships with their customers,” said Leading Ladies President Suzi Trajanovski.

“Clients trust brokers will find them the best product for their finance needs. But clients also trust brokers to provide the insights and guidance to make good decisions around spending and saving.”

Loan Market Geelong City has teamed up with other businesses in the local area to host information nights for investors. Alongside other property experts in the region - real estate agents and quantity surveyors - they talked around equity releases and other strategies to apply for investment loans.

For several years, Scott Beattie and Nevada Matthews from brokerage Cube Central in Queensland have been taking financial education – how to develop good savings and budget habits and how credit scores can impact the application process – into classrooms in South East Queensland.

Mr Beattie said the invitation to speak came about from a contact at one of the schools who recognised that financial literacy is largely absent from school curriculums.

“When we were invited to speak, I thought it was a really good opportunity to help the students - who are in their last years of school - set in place good practices that will influence on their financial journeys down the track,” said Mr Beattie.

“It’s not about generating leads: these kids are a long way off applying for finance. It’s about just helping them understand how things like credit cards can impact their borrowing capacity and what habits can affect their credit scores.

“We even talk to them about how they can build up savings faster at their age, like taking the casual shifts on days when there are better penalty rates.

“The presentations support our commitment to always put people in a better position after they’ve engaged with Cube Central.”

Loan Market Canberra is particularly passionate about helping First Home Buyers make the move from renting to owning - a milestone that is becoming tougher as house prices climb. Alongside their counterparts at Ray White Canberra, they’ve hosted information nights that have attracted 50 interested first time buyers who want to find out how the process of borrowing and buying works.

Angela Tracey, National Director of Broker Success at Loan Market, said business owners across the country were responding to the demand from the market for clear, jargon-free outlines of how to get ahead in property.

“Education is such a big part of the job for brokers,” said Mrs Tracey. “From every broker I speak to, it’s really satisfying to help someone experience that ‘light-bulb’ moment that kick-starts property ownership, helps them upgrade to a bigger family home or build their investment portfolios.

“Education is part of the glue that binds the broker and customer relationship.

“For many brokers it's not just a job, it's their vocation.”