Non-majors have highest-rated BDMs: Broker Pulse

The latest survey saw 231 brokers outline their experiences of using lenders throughout April 2022.

According to the report, smaller ADIs (those used by less than 20 per cent of respondents) were leading when it came to support from business development managers (BDMs).

A total of five lenders – Newcastle Permanent, NAB-owned 86 400 (which recently relaunched under the name ubank), Bank Australia, Beyond Bank, and MyState Bank – all received 100 per cent positive ratings from brokers.

By comparison, over March, only Newcastle Permanent BDMs had achieved a 100 per cent positive rating.

The Broker Pulse report showed that satisfaction with the more commonly used lenders (those which had received a loan from more than 20 per cent of Broker Pulse respondents) had fallen on the previous month; with no lender BDMs in this segment receiving a score higher than 88 per cent.

Of the most commonly used lenders, Macquarie Bank dethroned Bankwest as the lender with the highest-rated BDM support in April.

However, the rating for Macquarie Bank BDMs declined over the month, with 88 per cent of brokers rating their experience as positive, down from 92 per cent in March.

While 95 per cent of brokers surveyed reported having a positive experience with Bankwest BDMs in March, this also dropped, falling to 86 per cent in April, Broker Pulse figures showed.

Major bank BDM ratings

In the major banks’ segment, three of the big four banks saw their BDM experience ratings improve.

Eighty-six per cent of brokers surveyed reported positive experiences with BDMs at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), up from 80 per cent in March 2022.

As a result, the major bank climbed from fifth position in March to second position in April for BDM experience.

Satisfaction with National Australia Bank BDMs rose slightly from 71 per cent in March to 73 per cent in April, while 65 per cent of brokers said they had positive experiences with Westpac BDMs in April, up from 63 per cent in March.

However, ANZ BDMs saw their broker experience drop, falling from a 71 per cent approval rating to 69 per cent over April.

Among the other larger ADI (those used by more than 20 per cent of respondents) ME Bank BDMs also fell in experience ratings, with 63 per cent of brokers reporting positive experiences compared to 71 per cent in March.

Non-bank BDM ratings

Among non-ADIs, BDMs at AFG Home Loans displaced Connective Home Loans support teams in top position in April, with 100 per cent of broker respondents rating their BDM experience as positive.

Connective Home Loans’ BDM ratings declined from 100 per cent in March to 89 per cent in April.

Four non-banks managed to avoid receiving any negative scores from brokers regarding BDM experiences over April, down from six in March.

Over all lender segments, satisfaction with BDMs remained steady, with brokers assigning a score of 55 in April, down slightly from the record-high 56 in March.

CBA credit assessors claim top spot

Satisfaction with lender credit assessors remained unchanged between March and April, as they maintained their second-highest broker rating of 47 (an increase from 32 in January this year).

However, similar to BDMs, broker experiences with Macquarie Bank credit assessors also declined; falling from 98 per cent in March (the highest among large ADIs) to 90 per cent in April (the second highest).

This came as Macquarie Bank’s time to initial credit decision (turnaround times) also increased from two days in March to three days in April.

Conversely, CBA claimed the top position, with 93 per cent of brokers rating their experience with credit assessors as positive, up from 89 per cent in March.

Among the smaller ADIs, Newcastle Permanent scored the highest satisfaction rate, with 100 per cent of brokers stating that their experience was positive (up from 83 per cent in March).

In the non-bank segment, AFG Home Loans once again unseated Connective Home Loans in April, with 100 per cent of broker respondents reporting positive experiences.

Only 78 per cent of brokers rated their experience with credit assessors as positive at Connective Home Loans, down from 100 per cent in March.

Six other non-ADIs improved their positive broker rating in April compared to the previous month.

To find out more about the Broker Pulse survey, visit the Broker Pulse survey website.

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