Bruce said in receiving the award that he wished to recognise his own team and also to thank his clients who have supported him over many years in the mortgage industry.  He went on to say that after almost a decade of loan writing, he was thrilled to be recognised as the Broker of the Year for the NZMBA.   

The award presented by the NZMBA recognises dedication, professionalism, creativity and production in mortgage broking.  Finalists were selected by nomination from a 16 lender panel and the winners selected by an independent judging panel.    

The other finalists for the Loan Market Group in individual areas included Stuart Matheson (North Shore), Craig Lawson (Auckland) and David Fletcher (New Plymouth).

During the first two months of 2010 the market showed signs it was going to continue to make up for lost ground, however this has not occurred. The second quarter of 2010 recorded one of the lowest sales months since records were taken and this was emphasised with the release of June residential sales numbers, being 4,517.  Year to date sales numbers total 29,468 which, if replicated in the second half of the year, would indicate annual sales of 58,000.  As this is similar to 2008 it may cause some changes within the industry and the way we operate.  It has long been held that the real estate industry is one that is vulnerable to market conditions, and towards the end of 2008 there were real estate offices which needed to retract and many did so and even closed their operations. 

For the Ray White Group and the way we react to these times is important.  We measure our performance on market share and this is determined by our listings and sales for each of the areas across New Zealand.  In June we produced a record result for the Auckland market with 21.7% market share being achieved by Ray White members.  Across New Zealand our market share also continues to grow, being just on 15%.  Year-on-year this has steadily increased through the confidence of clients and customers utilising Ray White and also the growth of the Ray White Group membership.

Ray White is now represented through 134 local offices and a sales team of just on 1,350.  We have 13,500 properties under management and have introduced commercial and rural specialist offices.  As part of our approach to the total transaction Ray White has partner businesses including the Loan Market Group, who facilitate $1.5 billion in lending per annum, and Ray White Connect, who provide utility services through Ray White Concierge.

Click here to view the embedded video.

PLAN New Zealand and Loan Market’s business will continue to operate as independent entities in the market place.

Loan Market Executive Chairman Sam White said the acquisition gives Loan Market the scale and reach to invest further into its New Zealand operations.

“I am delighted that we are able to bring together two of the most highly regarded mortgage broking groups in NZ under one company.

“This acquisition is good news for all brokers in both PLAN New Zealand and Loan Market, in that it gives certainty of ownership in the groups they belong to.

“It also facilitates our goal to build a broader financial services platform, inclusive of an insurance broking business, for the benefit of Loan Market/PLAN mortgage brokers and their clients.”

 Mr White said there would be areas of synergy between the two companies.

“We believe the sharing of processes and information in areas such as technology, commission processing, training, and in the management and implementation of upcoming national regulation will prove beneficial,” he said.

“The combined resources of both companies will bring more value to every broker in the group regardless of which brand and business they trade under.

“The mortgage broking industry has been tested through the global financial crisis and has emerged as an industry that provides real value to its clients. As a consequence I believe that quality mortgage brokers should be expanding their product range to better look after the needs of their clients.” 

Mr White said there is no plan to integrate PLAN New Zealand mortgage brokers into the Loan Market brand.

“We will continue to grow the PLAN New Zealand business aggressively,” he said. 

“Of course if a broker wishes to change either the Loan Market brand to the PLAN brand or vice versa, from one business model to another, we will be happy to facilitate that.”

Mr White said there will be no changes to the management structure of either Loan Market New Zealand or PLAN New Zealand. The operational leaders of both businesses will report to Mr White.

Loan Market will also honour all commitments that the previous management of PLAN New Zealand has made to their brokers in moving to a flat fee model.

Mr White also anticipates that both PLAN and Loan Market mortgage brokers will reap the rewards of shared knowledge and processes to better facilitate existing and pending legislation that aims to regulate the mortgage broking industry.

PLAN New Zealand is part of the PLAN mortgage broking group which operates in both Australia and New Zealand, and was previously owned by Challenger.

In October 2009 Challenger sold its Australian mortgage management and broking business to the National Australia Bank and it was at that time that Loan Market began exploring the opportunity of taking the 100 per cent stake in PLAN New Zealand.

Loan Market currently has approximately 50 mortgage brokers and staff in New Zealand and over 400 mortgage brokers across every state in Australia; securing in excess of $600 million in home, commercial and business finance each month.

ENDS

For further information:

Sam White

Loan Market Executive Chairman

The pressure is forcing would-be buyers to up the stakes: at the height of the property boom, in mid-2007, properties were selling for an average of just 2.1% below the listing price. As the slump began, buyers started to pick up relative bargains, with sales at an average of 8.3% below the listing price in August 2008. As the market has tightened, so too has the gap between sellers’ expectations and buyers’ hopes, with an average sale price of just 3.9% below the listed figure in July 2009.

The speed of turnover is reflected in the number of sales: the second quarter has seen a 25% rise in the number of properties sold in the up-to-$1 million range (4,781), compared with 3,815 in the first quarter.All this is happening, says Ray White New Zealand CEO Carey Smith, against a backdrop of ‘self-cleansing’ in the real estate industry. “The recession has prompted a significant decline in both agents and offices, with a turnover of agents in the market of 52% in the year to February 2009.

 Times like these demand a rise in the quality of service and results for vendors and buyers.”Ray White has responded to this demand with a new service, Ray White Concierge. The service, free to Ray White clients, takes care of all connections and disconnections of services, including telephone, internet, gas, electricity and pay TV. The service also offers helps with home loans through Loan Market, and  insurance with Sovereign.

The progressiveness of Ray White in the area of IT and customer usability has been in evidence for several years; the company was the first real-estate agency to list on TradeMe, in 2005, and each office has its own web presence.

“It remains an intensely competitive industry, and the quality of service and access to information is what sets agencies apart from one another,” Mr Smith says. “We have developed Ray White Concierge as part of our response to that competitiveness – after-sale service is extremely important and is an area where some agents fall down.”

For confidential assistance with your home loan or to talk to one of our Mt Maunganui Mortgage Brokers, visit Loan Market New Zealand.

The Loan Market New Zealand consumer website  has been undergoing a major redesign over the past months and was released publicly overnight. The Loan Market New Zealand has 46 brokers faciltating 760 mil in lending per annum. 

The upgraded Loan Market website now includes -

Updated branding to the new International Loan Market logo

 Comprehensive menus for Home Loans, First Home Buyers, Investment Loans and Refinancing inclusive of  more extensive content.

 New user friendly mortgage calculators

 Full Loan Market overview including How Brokers Work section

 Prominent Contact Forms on most pages designed to collect real time consumer enquiry. 

 Enquiries are contacted within 2 business hours on a working day

 At-a-glance interest rate table displayed on all pages

 Real time interest rate guidelines on the front introduction page

 E Newsletter subscription facility

Site search facility

Please visit  www.loanmarket.co.nz

Ray White and Loan Market together at an Open Home

Tony Sheirlink of Ray White Browns Bay recently asked Stuart Matheson from the Loan Market North Shore to attend three open homes for properties he believed would have a lot of interest and the possibility of multiple offers. He was right!

The first property they received together, 5 offers on the Sunday night. Tony wanted them to have the confidence to offer their best offer, whether that was price or fewer conditions. The 2nd property, a deceased estate, and the 3rd an auction. Tony and Stuart are working together to have buyers in a position to bid on the day.  Stuart secured three appointments and also gave the buyer confidence as to what their preapproval meant, resulting in them making their offer unconditional.

Tony said ‘the vendor of the Auction property was really pleased with the Team approach and the fact Stuart was there  that to sell her property’ Tony added ’that it was a bonus as Stuart was around also helped with the overall security of the property’.