Revealed! The Top 25 Brokerages 2020

While three major brokerage brands — Aussie, Loan Market and Mortgage Choice — lead the charge once again this year, several independent offices gave the big groups a run for their money and, in many cases, reported higher broker productivity levels.

Aussie clinches the title

Major brokerage Aussie held the title as Australia’s top brokerage for the eighth consecutive year since 2013. 

Aussie CEO James Symond commented: “We are delighted to be recognised again by The Adviser as Australia’s top brokerage. It’s a true testament to our team strength of brokers and stores who continue to provide the majority of loans by brokers across the country.” 

When asked what he believed were the key attributes of Aussie’s success, Mr Symond said: “We maintain a very strong focus on our culture and support for our stores and brokers, who continue to place the interest of customers first, with deep levels of engagement, transparency, and strong partnerships.” 

In addition to culture, the Aussie CEO said the brokerage benefitted from its “ability to react quickly to market changes, and navigate a changing regulatory environment”.

“Aussie continues to work closely with government to ensure a strong broking industry, which always puts the customer first,” he added. 

He concluded: “At the heart of our success, is the customer. 

“Our pursuit to make the home loan experience better for customers and save them time, money and effort is relentless. Take the application process for example, which we know is such a key moment for our customers - we’re investing in new technologies and online tools for our brokers to save customers more time and effort; particularly when it comes to serviceability and documentation. 

“The year 2020 for Aussie will be focused on growing our network to support more Australians with their home ownership goals,” Mr Symond said.

Speaking on behalf of principal partner NAB, general manager, broker distribution, Steve Kane, congratulated the brokerages who had made the ranking this year, stating: "At NAB, we are genuine in our belief that the services provided by brokers to the Australian community are essential.

"Brokerages at the top of their game build strong customer relationships, provide personal service and help customers with some of the most important financial decisions of their lives.

“As the bank behind brokers, NAB is proud to be championing the great work of these Top 25 Brokerages who have brought home ownership dreams to life, or have fuelled business growth across the country,” he said.

Mr Kane continued: “We know many consumers would find it challenging to navigate the complex lending environment without a broker by their side.

“For this reason, more consumers are choosing brokers, with the latest data from MFAA revealing that more than one in two Australians use a broker to find a home loan that’s right for them.

“While we expect change within the industry to continue, we believe the heart of the broker value proposition will remain unchanged with an enduring focus on delivering the best possible customer outcomes and enhancing competition in the market.

“NAB will continue to invest in the broker channel as a true indication of the value we place on this very important partnership, with a spotlight on professional development and educational tools to support vital change and improve professionalism.”

“On behalf of NAB, I would like to congratulate this year’s standout brokerages for leading the way in their commitment to putting customers first and providing exceptional service," Mr Kane concluded.

The final ranking is determined by scores in six key areas: total book size, total loans selected in 2019, total volume of loans settled in 2019, book size versus years in business, total number of brokers and average broker volumes for 2019 (i.e. volume numbers divided by actual number of brokers). 

Each of the brokerages that entered was given a ranking score in each category from 1 to 25 (1 being the best).

The six scores were then added to give a final overall score. The lower the score, the better the ranking. 

You can see the full Top 25 Brokerages ranking in The Adviser magazine feature from the February 2020 edition - and learn what the leaders of the top five brokerages attribute to their success.

Tune in to this week’s Elite Broker podcast to hear more from Steve Kane and the head of one of the Top 25 Brokerages, Shore Financial’s Theo Chambers, to learn more about how he runs his business.

[Related: TOP 25 BROKERAGES]