June 11, 2014
With the recent appointment of its 30th adviser, Mortgage Choice's financial planning arm is going from strength to strength.
This latest appointment sees Mortgage Choice well on track to meet its target of 60 advisers by June 2015.
Speaking about the latest adviser appointment, Mortgage Choice chief executive officer Michael Russell said he was not surprised by the rapid growth of the business given the level of customer enquiry.
“Broadening our customer offering to include financial planning is a very logical step for us as for many years our customers have been asking us to recommend a trusted adviser,” he said.
“What we have achieved in the past 18 months is a credit to the amazing people in our business. Under our own AFSL we have built a very unique and new generational financial advice business from the ground up, where our customers are able to access clear and transparent advice that is both affordable and relevant.”
According to Mr Russell, combining financial planning with mortgage broking under the one roof has created a very compelling customer proposition.
“We understand the central driver for the convergence of services from a customer's perspective is really one of trust and convenience.
“Our customers do not want to disclose their personal financial information over and over again to various service providers. They want the convenience of dealing with one trusted organisation who can meet all of their financial needs,” he said.
“At Mortgage Choice, our specialist advisers and mortgage brokers work closely together in order to deliver to our customers the advice they need.
“This unwavering commitment to provide our clients with easy access to trusted specialists, choice and professional advice has allowed the financial planning side of the business to flourish since it was launched.
“Today, our financial advisers are receiving more leads than they can handle – which is a great problem to have.”
Mr Russell said to combat this problem and cater to the growing demand, Mortgage Choice is actively recruiting a greater number of advisers.
“There is no denying we are keen to get more feet on the ground,” he said.
“But, that said, we don't just want anybody and we are very selective about which advisers we bring on board. Much like our broking side of the business, we are searching for those who understand the value of building a relationship with a client from the start of their financial journey and who also want to take ownership of their own financial future.
“Partnering with a mortgage broker makes sense. Our customers are often making their biggest financial commitment to date and we need to ensure that their new asset is adequately protected. Further, we want to provide all of our customers with advice that can not only help put them on the right financial path, but help them achieve their dreams and goals.”
Moving forward, Mr Russell said Mortgage Choice, which is not controlled by any financial institution, will continue to build its distribution footprint and clearly establish itself as Australia's pre-eminent financial services hub.
“Our aim for Mortgage Choice is to revolutionise the way customers access quality financial planning advice, just like we did with home loans over 20 years ago. And, with this in mind, we are now fully operational and delivering,” he said.
“We are also currently road-testing our brand. We know there is still work to be done for consumers to see us as more than a mortgage broker and we are more than ready for the challenge,” he said.
“Watch this space.”
If you would like more information, call 13 77 62. Or, visit Facebook.com/MortgageChoice or Twitter.com/MortgageChoice.
For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Lauren Booke
Mortgage Choice Corporate Affairs
(02) 8907 0502 / 0448 240 047
Lauren.booke@mortgagechoice.com.au
Amity Harrold
PPR
(02) 9818 9334 / 0434 975 868
Amity.harrold@ppr.com.au
