Access 4 Finance Director Scott Thorpe said:
"Since we launched into the introducer market over six weeks ago, I decided my company needed to do something different from the normal introducer.
"Apart from us still being the only fully transparent broker, we have decided to go against the grain and make this truly an introducer’s market with the promise that we will deal with each case on an individual basis and let the introducer choose the fee associated with each case - as long as it makes commercial sense for us.
"Fees have always been a major issue in the industry that puts IFAs/introducers off placing secured loans. Most major brokers state the typical broker fee is 10-12.5 per cent - and this is industry-standard - but we are looking to change that.”
In each case Access 4 Finance will discuss the costing directly with the introducer. In some cases the brokerage may need a valuation to be carried out - which may cost around £150 - but if a full valuation is not needed a hometrack will be done instead, costing around £20.
Scott added:
“As long as the overheads are covered, the fee is pretty much down to the introducer. He/she may choose a big fee if they have put a lot of work into a case and seen the clients on various occasions. Another scenario may see an introducer wanting to remortgage the client within 12 months, so they may not want them to pay big fees for a 12 month loan.”
Scott highlighted a recent case:
“One of our introducers was told by a competitor that they wouldn’t move on a £4,000 fee, which meant that the client would not go ahead with the deal. After speaking to us we reviewed the cost of packaging the deal with the introducer, and a broker fee of £2,000 was agreed, which meant the deal could go ahead and was completed.”
Commenting on the fees initiative, Jon Lord of Metro Finance said:
“We’re delighted Scott and Access 4 Finance have decided to help mortgage brokers whose clients are looking for a secured loan but are put off by astronomical fees. Scott looks at each case for us on an individual basis.”
Access 4 Finance, which is on the drive to be the most transparent brokerage in the industry, opened up and revealed its full commission structure in July of this year. The step was a first for a brokerage, giving introducers a full breakdown of the processing costs on commission statements, including the invoices. It stated that it would pay introducers 50 per cent of the total income generated, including commission after the true cost has been deducted.
