There are apps for everything these days, and that includes credit and financial services. Here are some of the top picks from leading mortgage brokers to help you save time.
Life is busy, often frantic, so it makes sense for mortgage brokers – who already spend a lot of time on their phones – to make their job easier and more efficient using technology.
Enter the app.
But which ones do you choose? Here are four favourites from self-professed IT enthusiast, Masters Broker Group co-founder Andrew Tan, with some help from Otto Dargan, Managing Director, Homeloanexperts.com.au.
1. ZipID to ID clients
This app, recommended by both Tan and Dargan, is simple to use and useful as it is a verification tool that confirms the identity of clients that you can’t meet face-to-face. The app stores the time and GPS coordinates of the location a broker takes an ID photograph (as an audit trail), and the information is then stored in the cloud. Most lenders accept the ZipID app information and it saves time for the broker.
“The only negative is that some clients feel weird when we take a portrait photo of them during the interview,” Tan says. “There is also a verification agent service where ZipID sends an agent to the client. This is great if the client lives a long way from us.”
2. BankStatements
BankStatements allows a broker to view and print bank statement data for a client. “We send a unique link to the client (via SMS or email), and the client then logs in to the service,” says Tan. From there, “the customer authorises BankStatements to access their bank details, and we receive the statement info. This process allows us to quickly download all the client’s savings, credit cards and other statements that we require for a home loan application.”
Dargan adds that it’s “a great customer experience and very reasonably priced”.
3. Realestate.com.au
Tan uses this app to collect the latest available information on the properties his clients are looking to purchase. By making a property a 'favourite' he can keep tabs on the status of each property, such as whether it has been sold.
“You can also get the details of a property that may be pertinent for a customer’s home loan such as the selling agent’s details. By tagging my clients’ properties, the app also notifies me if their own property is listed.”
4. Camscanner
A more general-purpose app, but still wildly useful, Dargan names Camscanner as another of his essential favourites, as it allows you to use your phone or tablet to scan, save, archive, and upload multiple images and files, such as tax returns, anywhere and anytime. The app also allows you to convert scanned documents to text, as well as edit and enhance them.
To access great fintech solutions for brokers, including ZipID (through Equifax), at discounted rates exclusive to MFAA members, visit MFAA's Member Benefits shop here.
