Better for brokers   

The primary goal of any broker is getting the best deal for their client. However, matching what that ‘best deal’ might look like for each client against different finance providers can be complicated. At first glance, the options provided by financiers and banks might seem attractive with a seemingly easy offer, but that’s not always the case, according to Karen Carter, Head of Commercial Broker, BOQ Business and BOQ Specialist.

“Every financier has strengths in particular areas,” she explains. “At Bank of Queensland (BOQ), we are very good in specific niche markets. For example, SME is one of our key strengths. We have a very strong medical offering in the market with BOQ Specialist. We've been helping medical, dental and veterinary professionals for more than 30 years, and as a result our credit team has many years of specialised experience and understanding of their unique business models. 

One of the great advantages of this for brokers, she adds, is that you will get an alternative solution or a quick ‘no’ if something is out of scope. “We don’t want to waste your time, but we’re always happy to hear the scenario. If the scenario has potential, we’ll sit with you and work through that.”

If it doesn’t? “If it is in that grey spot, we will workshop it with our credit team and see if we can get it through,” she says. “Otherwise, we will suggest other places where your deal might get placed,” she says.

A wealth of experience

Having that deep well of experience in the medical space is key when designing financial products that meet the needs of these clients. For example, understanding the profession involves knowing many medical practitioners are advised by their accountant or financial adviser to buy their practice premises through their own self-managed super fund (SMSF). 

“That’s why we can lend up to 90% loan-to-valuation ratio to help the medical professional make this purchase,” Karen says. “This means the client only has to put in 10% of equity and they can pay the loan off over a term of up to 30 years. Plus, we can also offer a great fit-out solution in conjunction with the SMSF purchase. BOQ is about providing opportunity for your clients to contribute less equity and provide longer loan terms, providing cash flow benefits.

Having over 30 years of experience in financing such situations means BOQ Specialist can help brokers help their clients to qualify. One way they do that is with easy-to-follow information guides that suggest the right questions for brokers to ask medical practitioners in order to gather all the information the bank needs. 

Another stand-out feature of the BOQ Specialist offering which supports this process is their small relationship management portfolios. “Our portfolios are much smaller than a typical SME portfolio in a major bank,” Karen explains. “We don’t have hundreds of clients per relationship manager. We have 50 to 60, so that means we have more time to spend with the client and work closely through their options.

Karen says that a BOQ Specialist business development manager or relationship manager can work with the broker to help with the fact find too. “Our specialised relationship managers will help guide brokers through the process if they are less familiar with the profession. They'll work with the client as well—whatever the broker’s preference, that is how we operate.”

Making it easy

The whole lending process for brokers is streamlined and easy thanks to the new BOQ Commercial Broker portal, which has recently launched. If you’re an accredited BOQ commercial broker, you can access the portal to receive credit guidelines, the range of products on offer, up-to-date pricing and tracking for any applications.

“In addition to a trackable online application process, the new portal also offers a range of tips and tools such as wale and servicing calculators, to support the broker with getting the right information,” says Karen. 

Along with the new portal, BOQ is in the process of changing the way brokers are accredited with the bank. “We currently have a different accreditation process for each of the businesses within the BOQ Group including BOQ Retail, ME Bank, Virgin Money Australia (VMA) and BOQ Commercial Broker which covers BOQ Business and BOQ Specialist,” says Karen. “However, we will be transitioning to one form which covers all of these businesses, so the broker will only have to fill in a form once to become an accredited broker with each business.

That change to a simpler style of accreditation is just another way Karen and the BOQ Commercial Broker team are making brokers’ jobs easier.

“From a broker’s perspective, we understand that it's about making sure that you've got the right solution for your client, and we want to help you achieve that as easily as possible, whether that be through our portal, our policies or our processes” says Karen. “Price doesn’t always come into it. It could be enhancing the client’s cash flow. It could be the amount of equity that the client has to contribute to the transaction. Our understanding of these specialised markets and our focus on smaller niche portfolios means that we are experienced enough and nimble enough, to get our brokers and their clients the best deal possible.”

Visit the Commercial Broker web page to find out more about how Karen and her team can support your broker business.

^{The issuer and credit provider of these products and services is BOQ Specialist – a division of Bank of Queensland Limited ABN 32 009 656 740 AFSL and Australian Credit Licence no. 244616 (“BOQ Specialist”). Terms, conditions, fees, charges, eligibility and lending criteria apply. Any information is of a general nature only. We have not taken into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs when preparing it. Before acting on this information, you should consider if it is appropriate for your situation. BOQ Specialist is not offering financial, tax or legal advice. You should obtain independent financial, tax and legal advice as appropriate.}