CBA winds back accreditation barrier

BREAKING NEWS

As of this month (Monday 5 July), CBA has eased back its accreditation policy for new brokers, allowing brokers with one year experience to write loans with the bank. 

To become an accredited Residential Mortgage Broker with the Commonwealth bank, you will only need one year writing regulated residential home loans, or have written at least 20 regulated residential loans with different lenders.

​​The bank would continue to require brokers to hold a minimum of a Diploma in Finance and Mortgage Broking Management and be a current member of either the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) or the Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA). 

The story was different three years ago. In 2018, CBA restricted its policy that accepted only brokers with two or more years of experience to write its resi-loans. It was designed to “lift standards and ensure the bank is working with high-quality brokers who are meeting customers’ home lending needs”.

How did they come to the decision?

CBA came to this decision after identifying that the quality of loans written by brokers had significantly improved since 2008. 

"The industry has really changed over the last two or three years. There's much better oversight and much more governance across the board, which really pleases us for the protection of the industry and for our customers. - said Adam Croucher, CBA’s general manager. 

Having said that, CBA has taken on board feedback from their internal data which tells them that brokers with a year’s experience are able to foster a good relationship with the customer and represent the brand in a stronger and more meaningful way. 

What effect do they want this to have?

In a broader view, with the crisis looming, getting finance is tough and people are looking for a lender that can move really fast to secure the home, which is where brokers come in. 

Brokers help take care of the whole process from beginning to end of the loan and even talk their clients through all the plans if one fails to work. More importantly, they have a strong relationship with clients in terms of money.

CBA is among the Lenders who are after brokers with similar value and great synergy with them to bring about great outcomes for everyone involved. So it makes sense to reduce the standards to bring in new brokers who can understand and embody their values and be a good reflection of their brands. 

GOOD BROKERS = GOOD RESULTS

That’s proving true. 

The bank had been challenging its third-party strategy to ensure that it was fit for purpose for 2021 and beyond. They’ve rustled up credit resources to help train newly accredited brokers and invested further in training their people to help as brokers on board to ensure brokers are se