SHOUT OUT: to my fellow financial advisers for keeping the faith!

I am very grateful to my mortgage advisor colleagues for standing their ground!?

Do you ever feel you are riding a wild horse? The tighter you hold on, the harder it bucks and faster it gallops! Even before the pandemic began, our mounting housing crisis had created a wild and unpredictable ride. New regulatory demands for financial advisers (mortgage brokers) like me, have impacted us all in many different ways. From one-woman shops to massive networks, advisers have struggled to be the voice of calm as we offer personalised advice in a dramatically changing landscape to our bewildered clients and their whanau, desperate to buy or build a home.

Considering that our reason for being is to provide unbiased advice and support, the new requirements have put us at a new level of risk. We felt ourselves suddenly in the crosshairs of our authorities as we stood our ground supporting the clients who have put their trust in us. The new regulations have caused many advisers to switch strategies for our clients. In many cases, midstream. ?

Adding the effects of a pandemic to this already hot soup was something of a shock. How do you offer hope to someone who has just lost their business about the prospect of also losing their deposit on a contract they signed 9 months ago? We have all had to dig deep.

Many of us approached Parliament about the unintended consequences of CCCFA (Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act)

The timing of these regulations just added to the confusion!?All of us have had to put our heads down and soldier on for our clients in the meantime with whatever resolve we can muster, with little hope for relief.

Behind our smiles, most people have no idea the excruciating impacts these combined forces have had upon our businesses.?A few people have said, “aren’t you making money hand over fist in this market?” I have politely minded them that I represent buyers, not sellers. Buyers are not the winners here. Especially not first buyers.

That’s putting it mildly. How many clients have gone to multiple auctions to watch in horror as the price galloped away by hundreds of thousands as they throw their building inspections, legal due diligence and hope in the rubbish bin along with their bidder’s number? Most first buyers have endured multiple failed auctions and multiple due diligence expenditures.

Additional scrutiny and documentation caused by the new CCCFA has created high anxiety for all our clients. We've had many angry and tearful phone calls. I often hear myself saying: “we are not making this stuff up – these are the new laws.”

As a result, advisers have pulled back on which clients we can help. We have been forced to prioritize the capable.

I’m not saying the legislation is necessarily a bad thing. I lived through the GFC and the aftermath in America, and I know how regulations served to weed out a lot of people who were not doing a great job. It’s great to see our educational and business standards being raised. While bank profits have increased this last year by the billions, the commissions to mortgage advisers have not.

Most of all, I am disheartened by the sudden impact this is having on our clients during such a distressing time. We all are.

Sadly, we are seeing more clients declined by banks in the most heartless way. This has been a boon to our second-tier lenders (with a lot of agony getting clients over the line emotionally). Thank goodness we have other resources!

Certainly, the rise of interest rates and the cooling of the market has created a window of hope. For many, the chase for a home has eluded them as higher interest rates and tighter lending guidelines have put them out of the market. We still have options - but people need to be open to the short term options to get into the market now. While they can.

Incidentally, I missed the brutal first round of new impacts as I laid low for a few months last year after an accident. I was completely shocked when my first well-supported application was declined by an assessor. He referred to my client’s online games their kids were playing on their dad’s phone, as ‘gambling’ in a sombre tone and refused to listen to reason. I admit my reaction was not skilful. I begged! I was totally unprepared for the emotional spin my clients felt. Not to mention the duplicate effort of moving their application to another bank (with profuse explanations). We lost a month and many late nights worrying.?Fortunately, they succeeded but it was very close.

I must admit: I lost my temper more than once. I became despondent. I began to wonder if I was cut out for this industry anymore. I even thought of transitioning to another role as I began to doubt my value of 20 years in the business.?

We have all been forced to accept our new regulatory framework. I’m just not happy that it has created a literal crush of demand and confusion, exacting a professional and emotional toll on each of us to deliver our best under the worst circumstances imaginable. To add fuel to the fire, TikTok and Facebook financial opinionists have spread disinformation, hyping how bad things are as clickbait. Thanks a lot. Clients come to us who have followed your ‘advice’ to their detriment.

Homebuyers deserve unbiased professional advice. That is why advisers like me exist. I?have watched as we have risen to this challenge in so many ways beyond our professional duty. I’ve lost count of the hours of free advice I’ve offered to distressed people with serious work ahead.

Thankfully, we have our efficient server-based application systems, zoom meetings and the occasional coffee by the sea on a bench to get the job done. I am amazed at how much we have also hung together and supported each other to meet the increasing level of scrutiny required by our new CCCFA lending laws. Oh, and did I mention we have a new Financial Markets Authority regime? Lots of studying, late nights upskilling our businesses, implementing new software and reviewing new bank guidelines; all against this backdrop of high demand and frustrated clients. No wonder many people have left the industry.?I got a callback recently from one of our Bank Development Managers thankful that I even replied to his email for perspective on our new regulations. He remarked how many bounced messages and “I am no longer in the industry” emails he received.

Unsurprisingly, our industry attracts people who care about others. I am deeply grateful for those in my industry who, though technically my competitors, have come to my aid in my hour of need or sheer exasperation with a word of advice and a kind “You’ll get through this!” emoji smile.

To the many mortgage and insurance advisers still standing alongside me: Thank you for being here, day after day for all of us.