As many of you will be aware interests rates have been falling steadily for the last few months. This presents many opportunities for new buyers* who are planning on purchasing a property, especially those in NSW who will be provided a generous incentive of $15,000 as of 1st of October 2012.  I will be discussing this in another blog in more detail. If you require information regarding the changes as a result of the NSW Budget 2012 and how it affects you then please follow the below link.

http://thelendingshop.com.au/index.php/news/view/id/the-NSW-budget-and-how-it-impacts-the-property-sector/dir/

More importantly though the drop in interest rates presents a great opportunity for those of you who currently have a mortgage, Now is the ideal time to begin the process of getting in touch with one of our Australian Loan Company brokers so that we can help you save $$$$. We have successfully helped a number of our clients reduce their interest rates from between a quarter to a full 1% from their current interest rate on their mortgage. 

You may think this is a drawn out difficult process, and many people may be deterred especially when it comes to dealing with the Bank. However our network of brokers are highly skilled and savvy when it comes to finding the right loan for each client depending on personal and financial circumstance.

Remember we have an extensive broker network that is national so it doesn't matter where you are, we will be there to assist you.

Til next time,

Lesley

It’s time to look at your client’s home loan!

The Reserve Bank reduced the official cash rate by a further 0.50% on 1 May 2012.

Many lenders have already committed to passing on part of this reduction to their customers so now is a fantastic time to review your client’s current home loan products. This is the time when people are wondering if they have the right loan for their situation, and so are their family and friends! One refinance could lead to many more when you put extra money in a client’s pocket.

Contact as many relevant clients as you can and offer to review their current facilities and see if there is a better deal out there for them.

You may be able to lower their repayments, which may make a huge difference to their daily lives by increasing their cash flow.

Better yet they may choose to stay on the same repayment but pay that little bit extra off to get out of debt sooner.

Another reason to get in touch with your clients or leads is to offer them information on the maximum amount they would be able to borrow to either buy that new home or look at an investment property.

Don’t wait for someone else to talk to your client first, contact them today!

Til next time,

Lesley

Are you promoting your business?

Your business is one of many out there, all competing for the same clients. So how do you get seen and chosen above the rest?

Marketing your business is a great way to get your name out there and there are several low cost things you can do:

§  Send an email to your clients asking for a referral

§  Print some flyers off and hand out to referral partners to use in their office

§  Print flyers for a letter box drop

§  Advertise your business in free online directories such as hotfrog, true local and gumtree

§  Ask your referral partner to put your information on their website

§  Keep in touch with clients regularly

§  Start a social media page

§  Have and carry business cards with you, you never know when you will meet a new client

Templates and information on the items mentioned above are located on the intranet for you to personalise and use. Just be sure to send everything in to Compliance for approval.

So to get started:

Choose the methods that you are most happy with and can do easily.

Use the marketing plan template available on the intranet and fill it out. This will give you a clear idea of your goals, objectives and target market.

Get started! Develop your marketing materials, implement and monitor. Respond to queries, follow up and repeat the cycle regularly. Commit to a time frame and persist!

Remember the Marketing & Business Tools section on the intranet. It has tons of templates for you to use to keep in touch with clients and approach new ones.

Til next time,

Lesley

Offer your customers a better deal

With so much going on in the lending industry and economy, and interest rates going up and down, there has never been a better time to offer your clients a financial health check!

The February issue of the Loan Flag Client newsletter showed great examples of what can be achieved, not only with home and personal loans but credit card debt too. Your customers could save a lot of money or reduce their monthly repayments which may mean a great deal at a time where mortgage stress is prevalent.  Your clients will prefer the savings in their pocket rather than the lenders!

If your customers have multiple debts look at consolidation options for them, this way you can get them a better mortgage, lower repayments and one repayment to cover all debts, who wouldn’t appreciate service like that!

Getting in touch with your customers is easy, look at the templates ALCo has available for you, add your details and send!

Good luck!

Til next time,

Lesley

Leads

Leads are a key word in the broking industry these days, the golden word in fact. A good lead source can result in a lot of business, and the flow on effect of the lead referring you to their family and friends is full of potential.

It’s all well and good to have a referral arrangement but you need to work at making the arrangement work for you and produce quality leads. So if you have a source providing leads here are some tips to make the most of the opportunity:

1.     Be actively involved in the partnership. Provide your source all the materials they need to easily promote your services within their business (logos, flyers, brochures, content)

2.     Interact with the sources  social media, ask them if you can promote your services on their Facebook page

3.     Ask the referral source to put your business on their website for more exposure and an easy way for their clients to contact you

4.     Run promotional activities with you source. Add a flyer/logo to mail outs or emails they send and include their details in your own promotional activities so they feel like you are returning the favour.

5.     Provide good service to their clients and ask their clients to send anyone they know that needs finance your way

6.     Keep your source informed and up to date on work your do with their client so the relationship is open and communicative.

One word of warning to keep in mind though, with any promotional activity make sure the referral source is not looking like they purport to be providing  financial advice as they will need to be a Credit Representative or an Australian Credit Licence holder.

These may sound like simple steps but if you follow them thoroughly your will receive more leads and more business.

Til next time,

Lesley

Interest rate cuts may ease mortgage stress, but will lenders pass them on?

After two interest rate cuts and lots of rumours of another interest rate cut in February, mortgage holders may feel some pressure being lifted.

However, it is uncertain how many more rate cuts will be passed on to mortgage holders. ANZ has already started to do its own monthly interest rate review and other lenders may follow. The lenders argue that they borrowed funds at a higher rate so it is not feasible for them to pass on all rate cuts and remain profitable. They are receiving little understanding from borrowers given they recently reported huge profits and are cutting large numbers of staff.

It was a good PR move to pass on the December rate cut, a nice bonus for struggling family’s right before Christmas, but it is uncertain if the goodwill will continue.

So far, the retail industry and property market have not seen much of an impact from the two recent rate cuts. More rates cuts and some consumer confidence are needed to change this. The economy is stable but there is lots of uncertainty about, job cuts by the big banks, the Europe crisis and  contradicting arguments from all sides are keeping people on their toes and slightly nervous. Not many mortgage holders are running out spending all their spare cash. All we can do is wait and see, being cautious in the meantime.

Til next time,

Lesley