EY calls for mortgage brokers to move to fee for service
EY has called on the Financial System Inquiry to consider a change to the remuneration structure of the mortgage broking industry to address its "sales-driven" culture.It said a move from commission-based remuneration to a 'fee for service' requirement would help mitigate conflicts of interest and move the industry away from its sales-driven culture.The FSI's interim report asked whether the increasing integration of the banking sector with the mortgage broking industry was creating distortions in the way brokers direct borrowers to lenders.If that was the case, the Inquiry asked, what would be the best way to limit adverse impacts?The Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia submissions said there was no evidence that bank ownership of mortgage broking groups was influencing brokers to act anti-competitively."The evidence is that mortgage brokers have been influential in diffusing the concentration and facilitating competition in the mortgage market," the MFAA said.The association pointed to its own research, which showed that the Big Four banks have 82 per cent of mortgage share through direct sales channels and 74 per cent in the broker market. "Consumers are less likely to be recommended a product with a Big Four lender by a broker than if they sourced the product directly," the MFAA said.EY said it did not view the integration of banks and brokers as automatically indicative of consumer detriment or market failure.However, it said measures to create greater consistency in regulatory standards and conflict management should be considered, particularly given the likelihood of convergence between mortgage broking and financial planning industries. "This does not mean the same regulations need to apply. However, functional consistency regarding the removal of key conflicts should be a major objective," it said. "Mortgage broking remains a fundamentally sales-driven industry characterised by upfront commissions of 60 basis points to 70 bps and trails of 15 bps to 20 bps. Brokers are not remunerated in the absence of a mortgage product sale, which adds potential risks. "MFAA and FBAA codes of conduct and NCCP responsible lending requirements have improved practices and increased disclosures. That said, such standards do not equate to the introduction of best interest tests, conflict priority rules or conflicted remuneration provisions under FoFA."A fee for service requirement would mitigate the conflict created by commissions."