I suppose it’s fair to say that I continue to be both disappointed and surprised with respect to the lack of knowledge people seem to have when it comes to mortgage brokers. “What is it that you do exactly?” or “Oh, I didn’t know that!” are things I often hear and while perhaps disappointing, the upside is that it certainly creates an opportunity for discussion and for me to enlighten!

Ancient History?

Somewhat ironically, my father worked for one the big banks and years ago when I ventured out to purchase my first condo, he instructed me to drop into the local branch, speak to Barb (name made up because I don’t recall!) and she’d get me looked after. Now to be clear, while I wasn’t likely going anywhere else when my father was employed by that bank, nor was I getting any special treatment as I needed to qualify just like anyone else, it was just what we did back then. Our parents had relationships at the banks or credit unions, and we often followed suit. We used the branches for our daily banking, for car loans, for getting our credit cards, and the list goes on.

It’s not your parent’s bank anymore.

Fast forward to today and the local branches are a different place. The convenience of online banking, among other things, means we’re no longer reliant on the physical store fronts like we used to be and as a result, relationships such as those our parents had with their financial institutions are less likely to develop for us. As a mortgage broker, I have dropped into numerous branches to introduce myself to their mortgage specialists (sometimes their clients don’t tick the boxes and they can refer them to me for a solution), but I seldom find them. That’s because they are either mobile because people don’t drop in as they once did, or they cover multiple branches.

I know what I would do.

Given the choice between working with the apparent convenience of an anonymous online platform that can “pre-approve” me (really?) in 3 minutes, or work with a mortgage broker who can be an ongoing resource for me, help me understand my options and strategize ways to potentially save my hard-earned dollars? I would choose a mortgage broker. Given the choice of working directly with a single lender and only the products they offer, or working with a mortgage broker that has access to multiple lenders and perhaps can even represent me at my own financial institution? I would choose a mortgage broker. And finally, given the choice of trying to negotiate my own rates, or work with a mortgage broker who, based upon lending volumes and discounts, has access to all the best rates with lenders that want to compete for my business? I would choose a mortgage broker.

Oh, and perhaps THE most important consideration. A mortgage broker can do all of this and in 99% of circumstances it comes at no cost to me? Sign me up!