With the banking royal commission expected to release its interim report to the Federal Government tomorrow, research has revealed brokers are finding new levels of support at the expense of banks and their toxic culture.

The peak body for finance brokers in Australia commissioned independent research that found most people who have sourced mortgages through brokers have been satisfied with almost every aspect of the transaction.

Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA) executive director Peter White said the results indicate brokers are doing the right thing by their clients. “Overall, confidence with the brokers relevant to this research was 95 per cent, and the same percentage said brokers were easy to do business with.”

Finance industry researchers MyNextAdvice conducted the research to gauge the level of satisfaction with clients who had settled on mortgages obtained through FBAA members. The research captured responses from 2049 clients who had settled loans, on a range of key performance indicators, including:

• 94 per cent were happy with their broker’s knowledge and competency.
• 93 per cent agreed their broker had their clients interest at heart.
• 93.6 per cent found their broker understood the borrowers needs, objectives and financial situation, and
• 92.1 per cent were satisfied with the strength of the broker-client relationship.

The results coincide with the release of findings from a survey of property investors which found 86 per cent intended to secure their next loan through a mortgage broker while 75 per cent of investors secured their last loan through a broker. The Property Investment Professionals of Australia survey demonstrated an increase of 3 per cent in borrower intentions.

Mr White said the upsurge in support for brokers was no coincidence. “The reputation of the major banks has taken a beating but there has been no widespread issues with brokers.

“We have heard of bank staff not disclosing regulatory breaches until long after the timeframes legally required, staff witnessing unsigned documents, and signing without the signatories witnessing them. These issues are incredible.”

Mr White said the future is looking brighter for brokers. “While these survey and research results are good they are not perfect. There is always room to improve but when we see the issues raised in the royal commission we know the broker industry is best in breed, and the objections raised by the productivity commissioner are simply not based in fact or competent research,” Mr White said.