Canstar trials broker offering

While the website has provided home loan comparisons for consumers, it has not previously partnered with the broker channel.

However, it is currently in the middle of a pilot in which consumers can browse brokers in the capital cities and click through to call the broker once they’ve found the right broker for them.

The broker offering has been developed in partnership with broker platform Effi and provides access to around 500 brokers using the Effi ecosystem. (Effi currently runs a similar broker referral program on RateCity, which Canstar also owns.)

The Mortgage Broker Referral Tool enables borrowers to view a brief description of a broker’s experience and speciality (if applicable), the name of their business, their ABN and licence number, and the postcode in which they are based. It also enables them to locate and book an appointment with a broker of their choice (using Calendar Sync and a verified phone number). Alternatively, they can request a callback.

Canstar is paid a lead fee under the model.

Speaking to The Adviser about the broker pilot, Canstar’s chief commercial officer, Paul Duggan, commented: “Brokers are an important part of the home loan ecosystem, with the current stats around 70 per cent of mortgages coming through brokers.

“We’re a consumer-first organisation and we’ve had a lot of conversations and completed a lot [of] research with consumers that indicate that they do want to work with brokers, not just direct providers. And so this pilot program enables us to see if going down the path of providing direct access to brokers provides a benefit for our consumers.”

According to Canstar, the benefit could either be writing a loan or advising consumers of what they can and cannot service under the best interests duty.

He said the pilot aims to identify whether the customer’s need of finding a broker and connecting with the broker is met and whether the broker is performing the task required “to the extent that the individual is happy with it afterwards”.

Mr Duggan said that Effi was chosen as its partner as it was a “really interesting fintech” that had created an ecosystem to help brokers harness referrals and optimise their business and whose “entire reason for existing is being able to provide services to brokers”.

“Working with Effi has been really good and the team is building a very useful set of broker tools. We’ve been really impressed by where they’ve got to over the course of the relationship so far,” Mr Duggan said.

It is expected that the pilot will run for another six to 12 months, after which it is hoped that there will be a large enough dataset that Canstar can determine whether or not to keep the Mortgage Broker Referral Tool permanently.

If successful, it is anticipated that the permanent tool would extend out to brokers in regional areas, too.

Mr Duggan concluded: “We’ve got our toe in the water and it’s a good start. While it is too early to conclude one or another at the moment, it is performing well so far.”

Mandeep Sodhi, founder and chief executive of Effi commented: “With seven out of 10 preferring to use a broker for their home loan, it’s great to see Canstar providing the option for their customers to speak to a broker. And it seems to be working for brokers.”

According to the Effi CEO, since the pilot went live on Canstar, Effi brokers have “received a significant increase in traffic and reported double-digit conversion rates from lead to loan settlement”, which he said was “far above the industry standard”.

Mr Sodhi noted that there was no set-up fee for brokers, no obligation to purchase referrals, and a broker can toggle themselves as unavailable/available if they're too busy to take additional leads at a particular moment in time.

“The partnership between Effi and Australia’s most trusted home loan comparison site, Canstar, empowers brokers to help more people achieve their property ownership goals,” Mr Sodhi said.

[Related: Effi and AD Group enter new partnership]