Hello Everyone
I am seeking an advice to be a mortgage broker. It will be great if someone from the industry or outsider can advice me how to get started. I will commence my course Certificate iv in broking soon. But after that shall i go and work for some franchise as there are number of broker franchise coming up with information night and seminar. As I dont have any broker in my surrounding that can advice, I will really appreciate all bits of information that comes in this forum. Regards
Please do not take it the wrong way but I think you should work on your English first and foremost.
I would never trust the advice of anyone who does not speak proper English, especially when it comes to a rather important and significant decision like a mortgage.
This is just my opinion but I cannot imagine that a lot of people would think "Oh, this person is not so good at English but I am certain anyway he or she has read all regulations, all available information, has really looked for the best mortgage and mortgage terms (and read and understood them), and knows what they are doing."
I just believe that good presentation (in this case, langugae) goes a long way to instil confidence in clients.
I would never trust the advice of anyone who does not speak proper English.
What about their spelling ?
I just believe that good presentation (in this case, langugae) goes a long way to instil confidence in clients.
Obviously a typo which cannot be said of sentence structure, grammar etc.
Should a proper question or sentence not always contain a verb? ;-)
If you want to trust someone like that, be guest. Let's just agree to disagree then.
I know English might play important role but saying that I dont have to write a long essay or pass ielts exam. I think more importantly you have to understand customer needs and situation. I have gone to number of broker for refinancing who are not very good with English but are excellent in problem solving and mathematical & calculation skills.
Like Shannoningram said even my target will be my own community to start up. As I have a good saving and a full time job, I dont have to worry about income at the moment. Since I am really keen in mortgage and investment industry, I just want to start as a part timer or causal basis.
I think more importantly you have to understand customer needs and situation
How can you understand a customer if you can't communicate with them? This isn't something that can be explained by drawing pictures and pointing.
But you also need to understand laws and regulations in Australia and they are written in English. You need to relay such information to the clients, too.
So, English is absolutely crucial, whether you like it or not, even if you do target your own community. You will need to deal with institutions and other people who will speak English only rather than your language.
Using dodgy and sloppy English portrays an image of being unprofessional and unknowledgeable - at least that is my perception and professional experience.
that image wont be portrayed if the clients' english skills are worse
I disagree.
People who do not have great English skills sometimes come to see me precisely because their English is bad and they do not understand their legal obligations (as they cannot read them properly, and cannot understand when government departments explain them).
Even though their English is bad, they expect absolute proper English from me as that helps give them confidence that I in fact do understand the laws and apply them correctly.
If I also spoke mediocre English why would they waste their time (and sometimes money) with me.
Sorry, this is Australia and a good command of English is imperative to be professional. It really is that simple.
There is a reason why for some professions immigration authorities and the regulatory authorities require profession specific English tests - precisely to ensure that the reputation of the profession in question is not tarnished by members appearing unprofessional.
I don't understand. I normally correspond with my broker, either by mail, e-mail, in person, or over the phone.
Bad English shows there, either in writing or when you talk to them.
That is how I would know.
@Lysander: yeh, but if the client's english is worse than the brokers, they wouldn't the broker's english is bad
You are mistaken there.
I know many people who can recognise these shortcomings even if they themselves have greater shortcomings.
I do not need to be a plumber, for example, to know if the person I employed as a plumber actually knows what he or she is talking about when questions are avoided, cannot be answered, are evaded, stories change, solutions are absolutely illogical etc.
If you can't even pass the ielts forget about it.
haha interesting