Adviser Feedback 15/04/1999

Do you offer a housing loan service to your clients? Why/Why not?

Australian Financial Services do not offer housing loan products across the board, however we sometimes provide advice to clients where required.

Experience has shown that unless loans are core business it can be an area that requires some work for minimal return.

What we have pursued, however, is a total planning concept for our high net worth clients with complete facilities for housing loans, margin lending and other gearing options to manage and balance wealth accumulation and cash flow for clients. This, we believe, will greatly enhance the value of advice the client receives and is a service which high net worth clients have been looking for.

Importantly, it enables a reasonable remuneration to be gained from professional fees.

Geoff Moore, certified financial planner and general manager, Australian Financial Services, Melbourne

We don't provide housing loan services for our clients.

We're not a credit providing institution. We provide full financial planning advice, including estate planning and wills, and if we can't directly provide a service, we'll outsource to, say, banks or lawyers.

Basically, we are investment advisers - this is how we perceive ourselves. We're good at this, we know we're good at this, and this is why we try to stick to what we do.

The danger with providing too many services is that you may overstretch yourself. This has been something we've seen happen with many larger corporations - if you expand too far beyond your original area of expertise, you end up having to cut right back to your core business.

Simon Casey, investment adviser, Hartley Poynton, Perth

Yes, I do offer my clients a home loan service. I do this through a finance broker.

The reason I do this is because my practice takes a holistic approach to financial planning.

Home loans and finance are a big part of a client's financial picture. If we can structure a client's finances to free up equity or pay down non-deductible debt, then it is beneficial to the client. It is also beneficial when we can recommend gearing options to clients.

I think clients would much prefer to be dealing with me than standing in queues at bank branches or having to deal with a different branch manager every time they go into a bank.

As well, by going through the Australian Finance Group, we are able to offer the best packages available to clients from a wide variety of lenders.

John Foley, authorised representative, Advisor Investment Services, Sydney

Yes, we do. We offer access to mortgage information and loan services as part of a suite of services we provide to our superannuation fund members.

Up until now, we've been outsourcing these services, but we are currently looking at bringing these services in-house.

Claude Santucci, consultant, Buck Consultants, Brisbane

Yes, we do offer a home loan service to clients. Why? We are financial planners and you've got to have all the tools to look at your clients' circumstances to give them the best service. Some clients may have inappropriate housing loans, for example, or loans that need consolidating. In a low interest rate environment, it can be advantageous to accelerate home loan payments. This gives clients an opportunity to increase their equity in their homes at an earlier stage and is very important.

The principal reason we offer clients a housing loan service, though, is we don't want clients to go to the banks or other product suppliers.

We've also made some clients very happy providing them with full services, such as insuring their house, providing the housing loan, income insurance and establishing a savings plan. In essence, we've become a one-stop shop for our clients.

<I>Robert Green, proper authority holder, AMP Financial Planning, Melbourne