MY BUSINESS By Dana Kinita
The evolution of an
ADVISER
Martin Robinson, mortgage and financial adviser with SHARE, remembers his first client in 1988. That’s because he has kept a record of every application he has submitted to a lender. He speaks to TMM on the changes he’s seen in the industry and how learning to adapt and upskill has been the key in his durability. HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN THE INDUSTRY? I worked for a finance company, a subsidiary of Investment Finance Corporation (an Olly Newland business). It was the first Public Company to fail after the October 1987 share market crash. The receivership was announce at 6pm, Christmas Eve, 1987. On the bright side of that, we had a fantastic ‘In Receivership’ party in late January 1988. The only job I could find of similar interest was in Wellington. That was with AGC – I was their first commercial property rep in the Capital. Unfortunately the effects of the share market crash negated any attempt to write business. So I rang my boss, Chris Barry who some will remember, probably the day before he was going to call me and resigned. With no other jobs in the market apart from collecting bad debts I went out as a commercial mortgage broker, it was really the only thing to do. There was no demand, other than people wanting money to get out of trouble. With rapidly declining values in property, it was basically a nightmare. When I went out, I didn’t realise how bad it would be and it took several years before the commercial market recovered.
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WHAT WAS YOUR NEXT MOVE? I went into a partnership with an existing mortgage broker. Three months after I started with him, I worked out he was a drinking alcoholic. After a further three months he left the business and I took it over. While we were together I had worked out, there wasn’t enough business in the commercial market and we had to look at residential. Critically I realised good customers wouldn’t bring their residential mortgage to me as I would have to charge them a fee. So I put a package to ANZ in late 1989 which was shortly after they had bought Post Bank. Lo and behold after three months they agreed to split their 1% fee, which they charged on every loan, 50/50. This made me ANZ’s first broker to have a formal commission arrangement with ANZ. The average loan was probably $60,000 to $80,000 so I was making $300 to $400 a deal. Loose change now but that’s how I survived! My records show interest rates from the banks, back then, were 14% to 16%. So I approached NZ Guardian Trust who were charging a little less and they agreed to split their 0.75% fee 50/50! I therefore had three lenders who paid me commission, ANZ, Post Bank and Guardian Trust.
With my business partner gone I needed new premises. A referral source suggested I could get a free office if I sold a bit of life insurance. So in mid-1990, I joined Prudential to sell life insurance. Unbeknown to me their products also included income protection, total and permanent disability cover and importantly superannuation. An NZI Fire & General Agency also came with the Prudential connection. This meant I went from being a one-trick pony to a GP. Now I’m happy to call myself a GP in the financial sector, but that’s both positive and negative. Positive, as if mortgages go quiet I ramp up Insurance or KiwiSaver work. Negative, as continuing with the analogy of a doctor, specialists make more than GPs.
WHY ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT THE INDUSTRY? I say to my clients I like dealing with good people, that’s what I enjoy. That’s about 80%, the other 20% are the ones that give you aggravation, a lot of work for little return. So one of my tips is don’t be afraid to say no. In fact when you do turn business away it proves you are doing okay!
