AMS Property Gazette - May

I would like to start May’s Property Gazette by saying thank you to all those who visited our new Facebook page and clicked the like button. Your participation is most welcome.

If you missed this opportunity last month and would like to have a look please click here to be automatically taken to the Advanced Mortgage Solutions welcome page.

Now on with what’s happened this month.

 
Interest Rate Outlook

There’s a more positive vibe in the market as the new financial year gets underway. The increase in general business and housing activity (which was widely predicted to occur in 2011) is now starting to appear.

This is being supported by good demand and prices for residential properties in the larger cities of New Zealand. The continuing population increase of Auckland, and the Christchurch earthquake rebuild mean that these 2 cities are leading the charge. The increase in house prices should start a flow on effect to other sectors in New Zealand.

This demand is now starting to push up an increase in both residential property rents and values. These increases are driven purely by supply and demand. The shortage of houses being built (coupled with the perception that prices are rising), is creating strong demand in the market, even while economists are quoting various housing unaffordability statistics.
We have seen residential property values rise 3.0% across the country over the last year and are now just 3.0% off their 2007 highs. Auckland has led the charge, up 5.0%, followed by Christchurch at 4.1%, and Whangarei at 3.1%.

Mortgage rates have not changed and have held steady since the last round of reductions in mid-February. The mortgage curve has been very “flat” out to 2 years. We still believe the Reserve Bank will move rates up late in 2012 or early in 2013, this would suggest that it might be worth fixing for 2 or 3 years, particularly as longer term fixed interest rates can go up without a change to the official cash rate.

Now is a great time to look into your options. Please feel free to email me by clicking here or contacting me on 0508 466 356 to talk through what’s best for you.

What’s Hot

The market!
Money has never being so cheap and banks are fighting over each other for business. We have seen an increase in lending every month this year and feel that it is set to continue.

Deal of the Month

Consolidating debt can be a great way to reduce your monthly commitments and get back on top of your cash flow. Last month we refinanced a client’s debts, putting together the mortgage, car loan & 2 credit cards which were costing $1,880.00 per month into one loan @ 5.50%, reducing the payments by 690.00 per month to $1,190.00 per month - call us we deliver!

 
 
Interest Rate Outlook
 
As mortgage interest rates remain low they continue to provide fuel to the property
market. January house sales volumes lifted for the third successive month, with strong sale prices offset by an on-going lack of available houses on the market. This shortage is continuing to drive prices up.

Tempering the growth is the unstable employment market and continuing desire of households to pay down debt. These factors together with the uncertainty created by overseas economies will help damper a major boom in the property market, however overall it is predicted house price will continue to increase albeit at a slower steady rate. The possible exception to this is Christchurch where house and rent prices are rapidly increasing.

While the Reserve Bank do acknowledge that the property market is showing healthy signs of recovery they still have their focus centred on the European debt crisis, and all the noise coming from the Reserve Bank indicates that any interest rate movements to our OCR will not occur until the back half of this year. There are however some extremely low fixed interest rates available now that cannot be ignored. I believe for some people now is a great time to look at options – please read on for more information.

Mortgage rates eased further last month especially in the longer term 3 – 5 year fixed rates. Although this has made it cheaper to fix for 3, 4 and 5 year terms, these rates are still relatively slightly higher than the current shorter term rates. Similar to last month there is very little difference between floating rates and 1 – 2 year fixed rates - as such we still believe that the best options currently in the market are to either float, look to fix for 2 years or take a combination of both, splitting your debt.

Please contact me for a free assessment of weather these low interest rates are something that would help lower your mortgage costs in the short and long term – there are some real savings to be made at the moment.
 
What’s Hot

Free Money – get it now! The banks are currently running some crazy incentives with some giving away as much as $1,000.00 as an enticement for clients to take their mortgage with them. You will be surprised by the attractiveness of what we can get for you - Refer your clients now!
 

Deal of the Month

Last month’s client was a NZ citizen working as a “Miner” in Australia. He was trying to buy a home to live in and was using some equity in an existing block of land. After being frustrated through other sources he found his way to us and we got him sorted - call us we deliver!

        

    Welcome to February's edition of AMS's Property Gazette.

I would like to start by announcing the Advanced Mortgage Solutions has moved! We have now opened an office at 6 Burdale Street, Riccarton Christchurch.

Please click here to see our new address on Google Maps.

The process of finding an office has been a while in the making as the recent earthquakes in Christchurch made it harder to find suitable office space. Please feel free to drop by if you are in the area - I would love to show you around.

  What's happening in February?

Interest Rate Outlook

It would appear that 2012 has kicked off with some continued momentum from late last year as have noticed a broadening trend of being a lot busier over the last 4-5 months.

December continued on the strong trend of November in house sales, with consecutive strong months seeing increases in sales of circa 5% each month. It would appear the extended period of historic low interest rates is finally starting to push some confidence across to property purchases. This, together with the nation waking from its rugby world cup hangover, is driving the strongest level of activity we have seen for a couple of years now.

The Real Estate market is still being held back though by a genuine lack of quality stock across the country (with a particular emphasis in Christchurch) and this is seeing the average days to sell a house drop (now down to 39 days). We believe this will continue to ease further over coming months, giving the market some momentum.

Approximately 60% of Kiwis are currently sitting on a variable rate mortgage, which gives the Reserve Bank great confidence that they can actually influence consumer behaviour with interest rate movements if and when they have to. That said, they have signalled that they do not expect to have to push interest rates up until the 2nd half of this year.

As the 1 & 2 year rates fell in the latter part of 2011, we now see this flattening from the variable rate through to the 2 year fixed rate. As such there is little to no difference between the current variable and 2 year fixed rates. Given that we anticipate small increase in variable money later this year, the current 2 year fixed rate holds appeal for us as a sound borrowing strategy - or for the slightly more adventurous splitting the funding into 2 accounts of part 2 year fixed and part variable will ensure not missing out on any variable rate discounts if they were to come on offer. All in all, quite an attractive time to borrow money!          

What's Hot

2012 has kicked off right where 2011 finished. Competition is hot among the banks for business and right now the rate they are all sharpening is the 2 year fixed. We are seeing cases of 2 year rates being offered as low as 5.49% - that is cheap money! Refer your clients now!

Deal of the Month

Last month we helped a more unusual client request, coming from a 70 year old gent buying a modern retirement unit. He was short of the full purchase price and we were able to fund him on an equity release loan for the shortfall, not requiring any monthly payments - call us we deliver!

 

 

Welcome to October's edition of AMS's Property Gazette.

The Rugby World Cup is up and running and although Dan Carter is now out for the rest of the tournament, I think we have a great chance at winning the competition. Despite this distraction real world events keep on moving. Please read on for the latest interest rate and property information.


 

Interest Rate Outlook

Occasionally distance can be your friend, and being a little isolated and removed from the debt crisis fallout in Europe is certainly a good thing at this moment.

However while activities in these larger markets do have an impact on our funding cost, the severity of their impact is lessened. Nonetheless, the financial mess that is Europe is likely to see New Zealand’s Official Cash Rate held at its current low level until first quarter of 2012.

Locally, while the property market remains flat it is being readied for a strong 2012 on the back of the Christchurch rebuild and we are already starting to see positive signs in the Auckland market with well-priced houses moving quickly.

Of course we are half way through one of the strongest economic spending booms New Zealand has seen over the last 5 years thanks to the Rugby World Cup. But this spending is fleeting relief at best, and is seen as a temporary good-time blip; however it does clearly add fuel to our positive growth.

With the developing events in Europe one could argue that remaining on the floating interest rate is a good thing. I agree to a point, but only to a point. We have seen massive swings in financial markets recently, with large losses and gains happening almost daily.

However, the above strategy does come with a caveat. You need to keep your eyes and ears open for when interest rates do start to move. New Zealand is experiencing record lows in regards to interest rates and at some point it will be wise to lock in a fixed term before we see sharp rises in interest rates.

What’s Hot

There is only heat on one thing at the moment, the mighty All Blacks, even non rugby followers cannot help but be caught up in the hype that is RWC, and haven’t we as a country done ourselves proud, it is great to see how we have embraced the tournament – Go The AB’s!

Deal of the Month

Last month I had a client who had a black marks on their credit check & had been told ‘No’ by a number of banks, I managed to paint a clear picture of the circumstances for the bank and had her approved before long, saving a house sale for our referring agent - call us we deliver!

       Welcome to September's edition of AMS's Property Gazette. The big talk around town for the last month or so has all been about interest rates. What are they going to do.....go up.....or go down? Well, with no clear answer interest rates continue to dominate the headlines.

Interest Rate Outlook

Predicting what interest rates are going to do is very difficult right now. No sooner does there appear to be the movements of recovery in NZ & demand for fixed interest rates and the next thing the global debt crisis worsens and we all start second guessing each other.

Clearly our friends in the US and Europe are experiencing some difficulties in relation to their debt and funding troubles, and this affects us. Due to our size we fund a good portion of our residential mortgages from international money markets.

As Europe and the US scramble to keep their credit ratings and heads above water the price of purchasing fixed term money remains low and our earlier concern that fixed interest rates could spike has eased. However this easing may be short lived.

Locally, we are still showing signs of recovery with housing consents starting to move upward and the level of mortgage approvals up some 20% on 2010, indicating activity is definitely on the increase. Furthermore as soon as the government can coordinate the overseas reinsurers to provide cover on new houses built in Christchurch, the sooner markets will kick-in. Currently it is this stifling that is slowing the rebuild and recovery in the region.

With so many variables outside of our control, it does not give anyone much confidence to make bold predictions, and while the fixed rate pressure has eased, we still feel the international debt crisis has only delayed the inevitable rate increases. We do not believe we will see rates increase in September now as originally thought and may be pushed out to as far as the end of the year, however as we have seen this can change in an instant.
 
Put simply if you are of conservative nature, the current sub 6% rates for 1 year or low 6% for 2 years still look appealing, if you are more aggressive and are prepared to keep an eye on the market the current variable rates are still the cheapest option. A more prudent option is to have some of your loan on fixed and some on floating.     
 
What’s Hot

As the above outlines the finance market sure is a fickle place and majority of our clients really are confused as to what the right thing to do is in relation to interest rates right now. The single biggest demand we currently have is for advice on interest rate strategy – call me to work out yours.
 
Deal of the Month

An active Investor already carrying a sizeable debt fell at our door last month, exhausted by declines from his current financiers. As we had a wider range of options we were able to get $885,000 approved for him funding him into his next project - call us we deliver!

      Firstly I would like to apologise for this month’s Property Gazette coming to you a little later than normal. There has been a lot going on this month with the United States being down grade to a AA+ credit rating, a lot of talk around the pressures on the Official Cash Rate, and the New Zealand Mortgage Broker Association’s annual conference being held on the 4^th and 5^th of August.

So what has been happening this month?

Current Interest Rates as at 1 August 2011 
 
Variable                       5.75%  
6 Month Fixed            5.65%
1 Year Fixed                5.75%
2 Year Fixed                6.20%
3 Year Fixed                6.70%
5 Year Fixed                7.45%
 
Interest Rate Outlook
 
Should I stay or should I go now? If I go there could be trouble, if I stay there could be double....

 

But when?

 

Should you do it now or can you squeeze another month or two out at these basement rates of under 6%?

 

Personally I am of the opinion of that “it’s better to be safe than sorry”. It is almost impossible to pick the last day of the cheapest floating rate available, but if you look to fix shortly you are guaranteed to fix in a current fixed interest rate that is tipped to go up.

 

I am able to negotiation with lenders good margins off all fixed interest rates terms at the moment. This won’t last forever as the pressure on rates is to go up, so please consider contacting me when it is convenient.

 As the bank economists sat glued to their iPads, iPhones, Blackberries for Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard’s address on July 28th, most were left none the wiser as to whether now is the right time to lock in. Dr Bollard certainly has indicated that rates are going to rise this year, although exactly when nobody is sure.

You get the impression he would like to move now but is very concerned about the strength of our currency (or more so the weakness of the US, and now the credit rating drop) and this may be the sole factor in holding rates back to their current level. As such it doesn’t really put us in control of our own destiny when it comes to rates as we are reacting to events in the US & Europe as their debt crisis worsens.

My pick is he may not move in September but is more likely to do so on October 27th (the next OCR announcement) and the move could be as high as 0.50%. Be aware that as the demand for fixed rates increases, so may the price, and I would not be surprised to see fixed interest rates move higher before the variable rate moves.

My advice is to not be too greedy now as it may cost you in the future. It may be worth considering locking in part or all of your mortgage in the next month or so because, let’s face it, interest rates sub 7% locked away for a period of time is a good thing. 
 
What’s Hot

Fixing your interest rate! As many of our customers get nervous they are flocking from variable interest rates into fixed rates. Nobody knows when but at some stage this year rates are going to rise and often it is the fixed rates that move before the variable, so fixing now does make sense.

 
Deal of the Month

Getting by with a little help from Mum & Dad, last month we 100% funded a young couple into their first home, yes Mum & Dad acted as guarantors but they are only responsible for 20% of the value of the home & the young couple can comfortably afford the debt - Call us we deliver!

Interest Rate Outlook

You can’t help but think that we might actually be our own worst enemies in slowing the economic recovery. There are so many variables that indicate we are set for strong growth but they have been this way for a while now.

We have a market shortage of quality properties on the market, those that hit the market well priced are snapped up and market rents are rising which will surely start to push people toward buying. We also have a whole new wave of potential buyers hitting market as KiwiSaver matures to a point that allows consumers to withdraw their and their employer’s contributions, as well as qualifying for the government first home buyer’s grant of $1,000.00 per year for every year you have been in the scheme.

So what is holding us back? Confidence or more to the point a lack of it, as a nation we are still sitting on our hands, afraid to spend, afraid to take a step and it is this lack of activity together with a net outflow in terms of migration that is holding our economy back. We just need a little more activity and demand and the market can get some momentum which it sorely needs.

Mortgage approvals are up just over 10% on 2010 so this is a good indicator and as soon as the rural sector actually starts spending their 2^nd consecutive record pay-out as opposed to focussing solely on reducing debt the quicker the economic recovery will kick in.

In relation to our recommended borrowing strategy we hold a similar view to last month, we have no doubt that we will see rate increases in the last quarter of this year and as such feel that the shorter term fixed rates probably offer the best value as there is little differential between variable and 1 year or 18 month fixed rates. For those a little more risk adverse we suggest the 2 year rate still offers good value at less than 1% above current variable rates, as long as you realise you pay a small premium now to buy some security.        
 
What’s Hot
KiwiSaver, it has now reached the stage where consumers who have been in their Kiwi Saver for 3 years can withdraw their and their employers contributions together with a first home buyers grant from the government puts many of these people in a position to buy their first home.
 
Deal of the Month
Last month we helped a couple with 3 teenage kids restore control to their finances, things had got out of control over the past few years with them racking up 2 credit cards and 2 personal loans, we refinanced it all into one, saving them $500.00 per month - Call us we deliver!

    

Please find June's Property Gazette below. As always I have made comment on relevant market and policy informtion to help you keep up to date. I appreciate the monthly feed back and questions that arise from each newsletter and I'm sure this will be no different.

I would also like to take this opportunity to welcome all those clients who have joined the AMS team from Carolyn Dreaver's ODL Mortgages. Carolyn has decided to leave the mortgage industry and we wish her all the best of luck with her future business ventures.
 

Current Interest Rates as at 1 June 2011  

 

Variable              5.40%
6 Month Fixed         5.59%
1 Year Fixed          5.55%
2 Year Fixed          6.20%
3 Year Fixed          6.70%
4 Year fixed          7.30%
5 Year Fixed          7.45%

 
Interest Rate Outlook

You can be excused for missing the release of the biggest ‘no news’ budget in recent history, it just sort of came and went with very little fanfare and the underlying message continued that we have to keep our spending to a minimum both as consumers and from a government perspective with all focus rightly looking forward to the rebuild of Christchurch.

A tight budget means that fiscal policy will keep growth in check for the year ahead which will take some pressure off the Reserve Bank in terms of how high they would need to push interest rates, which is of course a good thing.

House sales figures continued to lift through April & May from their late 2010 trough however still remain around a third below historical averages. Encouragingly though building consents are on the rise with a new motivation arising to ‘get it done now’ before construction sector shortages emerge across the country use to the Christchurch rebuild. This increased activity together with a second successive yearly record payout on the dairy sector should start to give the economy a nice little boost, the reality is farmers will have to start spending or be faced with a sizeable tax bill & we all know how much cockies like paying tax!

All of the above is leading to a pretty positive outlook with confidence quite high in business and investment sectors, this if course leads us to our current recommended borrowing strategy.

With more than 2% variance between long term fixed rates of 5 years it is difficult to see value in longer term rates. However, we have no doubt that we will see rate increases in the last quarter of this year and as such feel that the shorter term fixed rates probably offer the best value as there is little differential between variable and 1 year or 18 month fixed rates. For those a little more risk adverse we suggest the 2 year rate still offers good value @ less than 1% above current variable rates, as long as you realise you pay a small premium now to buy some security.        
 
What’s Hot

Competition really is a beautiful thing and now the Banks credit appetite has returned they are returning to their old tricks of sweetheart deals on interest rates and professional fee contributions. We are seeing some very sharp pricing now as the banks compete for our clients.
 
Deal of the Month

Last month we funded a gentleman into his first home, he had enquired about using Kiwi Saver as deposit on his home and was very pleasantly surprised to learn that not only could he use his contributions but his employers and qualify for a government subsidy, totalling $20,000.00 he could put toward his first home making it all achievable - Call us we deliver!

  This article was published on the front page of the Press on the 11^th May 2011. I was quoted from the perspective of being the owner of Advanced Mortgage Solutions, a mortgage broking company operating in Christchurch post earthquakes.

 

Real estate market split by quake

Buyers are shunning homes in eastern Christchurch as the effects of the earthquakes split the housing market.

Sales in the hardest-hit suburbs have slowed to a trickle, with so few recorded that valuation agency QV has been unable to measure trends in values.

In Sumner, Chris Milne can neither sell nor rent his undamaged beachfront apartment.

He bought the property to rent out now and retire in later, but even halving the rent drew no tenants.

The apartment is for sale, with an asking price less than its 2007 rating valuation.

Open homes have drawn a blank.

"Nobody turned up," Milne said. "People are just reluctant to live out this way.

"They seem to be worried about the portaloos, the damaged roads and the traffic jams, but it's certainly no worse here than anywhere else."

He said the Sumner real estate agents had left.

Real estate agent Tim Dunningham, of Min Sarginson, said the market around Lyttelton Harbour had "just gone dead", even as far away as Diamond Harbour and Church Bay.

"We've actually had almost no damage over here, but we are finding there are no buyers and no interest whatever. It's very frustrating," he said.

"People are rushing to buy houses in Rolleston, forgetting that's near where the first big earthquake was centred."

Melanie Swallow, of QV Valuations, said some house sales had been a knee-jerk reaction to the February quake and the initial flurry of activity was settling down.

She said buying patterns were in some cases based on perceptions of certain suburbs and not facts.

There had been "strong interest" in homes in the northwestern suburbs and in towns in the Selwyn and Waimakariri districts, as long as they were not overpriced.

There was no indication prices in any areas had fallen, Swallow said. Lack of job security had slowed the move of homeowners from first to second homes, she said.

Real Estate Institute figures show that about 80 per cent of Christchurch house sales in March were in the western half of the city.

Prices since the February quake were up compared with a year ago in North Canterbury and in Christchurch suburbs such as Bryndwr, Burnside and Riccarton.

Few sales have been recorded in the eastern and hill suburbs.

Mortgage broker Scott Miller, of Advance Mortgage Solutions, said most sales were now on the west side of town, but buyers in the hardest-hit areas were having no trouble getting loans.

"We've actually had more success getting borrowers across the line than after September, as long as there's replacement insurance."

He said lenders did not always require engineering reports.

The quakes had affected business for mortgage brokers, and he had heard of some having to find ways to supplement their income.

Christchurch's housing market has had its quietest period on record since the February quake, with homes selling at a rate of about six a day in the weeks afterwards.

 

 

How did you get started?

How did working in the industry come about?

 

I was a property investor freshly back from spending 12 years in the UK. I didn’t really want to go back to the type of employment I was doing when I left New Zealand so I started looking around at my options. I spent about a year looking around before settling on joining a relatively new mortgage broking company called Investor Finance. They were new to New Zealand after establishing themselves in Australia and promoted the idea of getting into the company at the grass root level. Well let’s say things turned out a little different to how I imagined things would go.

How long have you been a broker? What were you before?

 

I have been a broker since November 2006. Other employment include - Hospitality Management, Sales Representative, Head of Logistical services.

Has it always been a passion?

 

I have always had an understanding of figures and a passion for property, so when the opportunity to become a mortgage broker became available I jumped at the chance.

 

Why mortgage broking?

What is it about broking you love/are passionate about?

 

Finding the solutions to people’s needs and requirements, it’s fair to say that no two applications are ever the same. First home buyers are always a challenge, however at the same time are often the most rewarding. In one regard first home buyers require the most ‘hand holding’ through the buying process, but the smile on their faces once the finance has been approved and they have confirmed and then purchased their first home is priceless. Seasoned investors are great to deal with as well because the loans they require generally have a degree of depth and difficulty that is not as evident with first home buyers, however you rarely get the same excitement factor from experienced property investors as often it is simply part and parcel of what they do for a living.

 

How did you learn the business and educate yourself?

Do you have a mentor?

I follow a number of big names in the mortgage broking industry, both in New Zealand and overseas, however I don’t have a personal mentor as such.

Was it self-teaching, did you study?

I was lucky in the fact when I first started to learn my craft I was part of a team of experience mortgage brokers. I was able to ask for their assistance and benefit from their experience. This not only helped me get my early applications across the line but allowed me to pick up valuable experience in a very short period of time.  I passed the ‘Mortgage Essentials’ exams with 98.5% which was the highest grade achieved by anyone sitting the exam up to that time. The study and passing of the exams necessary to become a mortgage broker must have worked as in my first year at Investor Finance I was rewarded by winning three awards, namely - Mortgage strategist of the year, highest number of settlements for the year, and  highest lead generation of the year.

Best and worst times in the business?

 

Both Answers to this question revolve around the GFC. The best times were within the first couple of years of becoming a broker. Times back then were good, property investment was the ‘thing’ to do, and there was plenty of business and most of it came to you – great times. Then when things began to turn, nobody really expected the downturn to be so dramatic. At the same time the first company I worked at and cut my teeth at left New Zealand shores to concentrate on their Australian arm. This meant starting my own business from scratch – new logos, stationery, website, office’s and all the other requirements for starting and running your own business. Work was harder to find and I found myself speaking at all sorts of seminars and meetings. I would sometimes find myself talking to a group of investors at a seminar in Auckland one day and doing the same in Queenstown later the same week. Times have changed again and being at the coal face of property finance I can confidently say we are now through the worst. Bigger deals are coming through on a regular basis, lenders policies have relaxed, and interest rates have remained low for an extended period of time.

 

 

Best and worst business moves you’ve made?

 

The best business move I made was going out on my own and starting Advanced Mortgage Solutions at a time when the mortgage broking market was being battered by the GFC. I learned a lot about myself, not the least of which was that I had the skills to survive during a time of turmoil. It was important to me that I could prove I did not need the assistance from an established company to operate in hard times.

 

The worst moves?

I haven’t really made any yet.

Best and worst advice you’ve received?

Best advice

Keep an up-to-date CRM and regularly contact your clients.

Worst advice  

When learning I was told to follow a script when talking to the clients in meetings and over the phone – this was the worst piece of advice I was given as the resulting conversation did not sound like me and it most certainly did not sound natural – Find your owe spiel and sound natural.

Biggest challenge now?

Regulation is bringing a lot of changes to the industry. Up skilling, particularly in the time frames allowed has been challenging. However there has been a positive side effect to regulation as it has been good in weeding out the part-time brokers, or people within related industries ‘having a go’ at completing a mortgage application as they now have to prove their competency within the new regulatory framework set out by the Commerce Commission.

 

Would you do it all again?

 

Absolutely, despite the hard times I still loving mortgage broking.

 

Best business book?

It’s not really a business book, but more relates to money and how money works. ‘ The richest man in Babylon’ by George Samuel Clason is entertaining and the principles are sound.

Is there a typical working day?

 

I spend most of my days completing tasks in the following order - Answering emails, submitting applications, and meeting existing and new clients wishing to apply for finance. I find the hours in a day can whip past if don’t have some structure.

Top tip?

 

Keep your CRM up to date and work the hell out of it. Join social networking groups like Linked In, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Who is the individual that has most inspired you in business?

Richard Branson – his life, books, and achievements are inspiring.

What is your biggest long-term business goal?

 

To grow AMS into a bigger brand that operates throughout of the main centers in New Zealand. I am pleased to say that this plan is already gathering momentum with a new mortgage broker about to start at the Christchurch office and I have had an expression of interest from a broker in Auckland who is looking at operating under the AMS business model.

How are you preparing for regulation of financial advisers this year and how will this affect your business?

As I mentioned above regulation has brought its own challenges. I have my final exams to sit in March which will bring me up to the standard required by the new regulations. I think that one of the biggest challenges moving forward will be finding and recruiting brokers who have met and attained the required regulatory standard. Of course people looking to becoming a mortgage broker will find it a lot tougher because of regulation than it was even a year ago.