The following four expectations form the cornerstone of the transaction. By ensuring that these expectations are met, the mortgage agent will develop a strong relationship with the borrower and ensure that the industry as a whole is well represented.
The best way to ensure that these expectations are consistently met is to adopt them as core values or philosophies that are applied to every transaction.
1. Act in the borrower’s best interests
The borrower’s first expectation is that the mortgage agent will at all times act in the best interests of the borrower. This expectation is key to the borrower and is vital to the success of the transaction. Acting in the best interests of the borrower can best be defined as putting the borrower’s needs and concerns first and foremost above others involved in the transaction, limited only by ethical, moral and legal restrictions.
Mortgage brokering in Ontario is regulated by the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) and requires a license. To obtain a license you must first pass an accredited course. The Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada Inc. (REMIC) is accredited by FSCO to provide the course. For more information please visit us at www.remic.ca/getlicensed or call us at 877-447-3642.
2. Completely analyze the borrower’s needs
Taking a mortgage application and finding the right lender and product for the borrower is not possible unless the mortgage agent has detailed knowledge of a borrower’s needs. This is different from simply asking the borrower what type of mortgage they would like.
To completely analyze a borrower’s needs requires that the mortgage agent assist the borrower in determining what those needs are. That is an important distinction from simply having the borrower express what they believe their needs to be to the mortgage agent.
3. Make appropriate recommendations based on the borrower’s needs
If the mortgage agent embraces the above philosophies then this borrower expectation is a natural extension. By completing a full analysis of their needs and being determined to do what is in their best interests, the mortgage agent will make the appropriate recommendation, provided that they have the requisite knowledge to determine what that recommendation should be.
This means that, to be able to make an appropriate recommendation based on the borrower’s needs, the mortgage agent must be fully versed on all of the lenders available and their products.
Not only does the mortgage agent have to be aware of products available to them, but they must also take reasonable steps to be aware of products offered through lenders not dealing with the mortgage brokerage industry. This may include major banks or any other lender. This is a critical point because a mortgage agent cannot make an appropriate recommendation if they are unaware of all of the mortgage products available to the borrower.
4. Facilitate the transaction to successful completion
A borrower further expects, and has the right to expect that the mortgage agent will facilitate the transaction to a successful completion. In other words, the mortgage agent will be by their side until the transaction closes.
Successful mortgage agents will advise the client of all of the steps in the transaction and stay in touch with them throughout, even when the mortgage agent is no longer involved. For example, once he or she has fulfilled the lender’s conditions there is nothing else for the mortgage agent to do except wait for the transaction to close.
Mortgage brokering in Ontario is regulated by the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) and requires a license. To obtain a license you must first pass an accredited course. The Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada Inc. (REMIC) is accredited by FSCO to provide the course. For more information please visit us at www.remic.ca/getlicensed or call us at 877-447-3642.
