Are we ok?

If there is one group of people needing a check in on their mental health this week, it’s mortgage brokers and their support staff. Not only has the last 2 years been a battle against tightening credit, weekly changes to lenders’ credit policies, property prices falling, delivering bad news to hopeful clients, and misinformation about the broker industry portrayed through an ill-informed media network… this week we were coward-punched by The Honourable (really?) Justice Kenneth Madison Hayne AC QC and the government.

Mortgage brokers were sent by the big banks down a dark alley, where a power-drunk commissioner was eagerly waiting in the shadows, ready to beat brokers black and blue.

The coward-punch that was inflicted on the mortgage brokers was a triumph in distracting the government and consumers from the real misconduct caused by the hands of banking executives.

The phrase ‘coward-punch’ is appropriate because the aggression isn’t based on facts, just the desire to punish the weak who will provide the least resistance. Mortgage brokers, already battered and bruised from tough lending conditions, increased compliance and 12 months of uncertainty around their industry, were the perfect victim to claim a win for the Banking Royal Commission.

Seriously shaking up the banking executives and legislating new laws to control the misconduct from within the big four banks would be too difficult. We’ve all seen the slap on the wrist they got and how banks share prices were boosted following the report being published. Did we really think the commission was that impartial to actually do anything that harmed the bank CEO’s or share prices?

So, are we ok?

No, but we will be.

This week has brought frustration, disappointment and sadness to new levels. We have been fighting for over 2 years now. We’ve been fighting the banks inexperienced credit managers, challenging property valuers, digging deeper and deeper into client’s spending habits, implementing new compliance requirements, changing the way we operate so we can meet bank’s quality metrics. Every day throws us a new challenge, whether it be an interest rate rise, policy change, or a client pleading with us to help them refinance so they can pay out their ex-husband and keep the family home for her 7 year old.

The great thing about being a fighter, is that when we get knocked down, we know exactly how to get back up again, and fight even harder. Mortgage brokers have become professional fighters. And we’ve got a lot of people in the ring with us, our industry bodies, our aggregators, our clients, family and friends.

In the next few weeks, the frustration, disappointment and sadness will slowly disappear, and the mongrel will return, ready to step back into the ring. We’re not going anywhere because consumers need us. We’ll keep fighting for as long as you’ll cheer us on.

Support your mortgage broker

Consumers are the ones who will suffer as changes are implemented to our industry. Talk to your local MP, tell your friends and family about your mortgage broker, refer them business, comment on social media articles that misrepresent mortgage brokers, participate in broker surveys, speak up and shout from the roof tops that consumers need choice and shouldn’t have to pay for it. Hopefully, someone in government will hear you and us.