Recent reports show that the use of brokers is becoming more appealing to those applying for mortgages, according to the Toronto Star.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), for instance, revealed that 39% of homeowners transacted through a broker to arrange their mortgage in 2017, up from 33% the year before.
“There have been an awful lot of changes in the last 24 months with mortgage regulations and the interest rate environment, and it’s getting more complicated,” said Mortgage Professionals CEO and President Canada Paul Taylor.
Taylor suggested that the present market conditions called for expert or independent advice, hence driving more people to seek for mortgage brokers’ help.
Further, he identified that most broker clients are first-time buyers and suspected that the approach had become more appealing to that group because they do not prefer large institutions. Another reason was the way mortgage services were marketed, with “59% of mortgage brokers are leveraging technology and social media to reach clients, which appeals to younger consumers, while only 17 % of conventional lenders are,” accordingly to the Toronto Star.
CMHC’s manager of client relations Monica Guido had a similar observation, saying that use of brokers is “higher among first-time buyers.” She emphasized that “finding a deal, or the desire to get the best rate, is the key reason people use a broker.”
Using a mortgage broker does have benefits. While a bank mortgage officer offers only the products his or her institution offers, mortgage brokers provide multiple options since they work with numerous lenders, including banks, and insurance and trust companies.
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