TAP hoping to pick up new business with big discount
In an effort to attract independent mortgage advisers to its aggregation platform and other services, The Adviser Platform (TAP) is offering a 50% discount for six months.
Monday, November 13th 2023, 7:04AM 
6 Comments
by Sally Lindsay
TAP launched its full-service mortgage aggregation platform earlier this year after the acquisition of Q Group. TAP managing director Ryan Edwards says the platform isn’t struggling to attract new business but he does see a level of apathy caused by a lot of change over the past two to three years inside and outside the industry making business difficult for mortgage advisers.
TAP has decided to put its money where its mouth is and say to advisers ‘we know change is difficult, but we are willing to invest money in a partnership’, he says. “We do see it as a partnership and an investment in a long term relationship.”
The aggregator platform is specifically targeting mortgage advisers and if anybody signs up the business says it will cover half the cost for the first six months. On an apples for apples basis, Edwards says TAP’s pricing, of about $750 a month for a standard service, is quite sharp compared with other platforms and it recognises not everyone is rolling in money.
The amount an adviser pays is on a case-by-case basis and other services they choose to use are billed separately.
“We realise a lot of advisers have perhaps got change fatigue. “They might have changed systems over the past 18 months and it hasn’t gone that smoothly. “Often people might look at an alternative and think it sounds good, but the change in their minds is difficult and they don’t do it.”
Changing platforms in general is challenging, Edwards says. “It can become kind of an invisible handbrake. I think academically people think, ‘yes, I should make a change’ but don’t do anything about it.”
He says one of the common pain points for advisers that deters them from switching platforms is concern about the time and accuracy of migrating their existing database. “TAP’s differentiation is it does 95% of the heavy lifting in data migration for an adviser who switches to its platform.
TAP wants to provide an obvious incentive for advisers to consider where their business will be over the next couple of years, he says.
“Advisers need to ask themselves what do they need over the next three years rather than the next three months and if their existing set up is delivering that? Obviously when they are looking at it over a longer time horizon, they usually get a very different answer.”
He says confusing the situation is many advisers are not aware of the options available.
Although there are 10-12 mortgage aggregators, the majority of the market is covered by three or four of the larger aggregators. New Zealand Financial Group Services is the biggest by some margin and Edwards says a lot of people he talks to just aren't aware there are different ways to approach licensing and running a FAP.
“There's no single industry standard, which isn't a bad thing, but 80-90% of the market is probably using one of four or five systems and the remainder, there's quite a few, for better or worse, don't have any system at all, to be honest.
“By throwing our offer out to the market, it's unashamedly to promote what we do and say that we're willing to invest in that partnership because we believe in the long term.”
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Comments from our readers
Our model 100% supports and encourages advisers to run and operate their own FAP.
Our pricing on an apples-for-apples basis is already very competitive, this promotion is unashamedly designed to start a conversation with advisers who may be looking at their options.
Our entire ethos is to charge a fair price for a fair service and make sure advisers have the tools and support to thrive.
I'm sure we are on the same page when we talk to advisers about cost being an important factor, balanced out by the provision of value.
As the article suggests, we're willing to put our money where our mouth is and are looking to put a positive spin on the market and opportunity for advisers heading into 2024.
Yes aware all the banks currently “force” mortgage advisers to belong to an aggregator. This won't always be the case though as insurance advisers already deal directly with the insurers. Over time it's inevitable that the mortgage advise industry will go in the same direction.
Being an independent mortgage adviser either a class 1 or 2 FAP Licence holder and being forced also to belong to an aggregator (Class 2 FAP licence holder) just so that we can deal with the banks makes no sense within the context of licensing and who is actually providing the advice to the client.
If you feel that TAP is adding value to your business that's great. I and many other experienced mortgage advisers look forward to the day when we can cut out the aggregator completely and have a direct relationship with the banks. If we weren’t all forced to belong to an aggregator just to be able to deal with the banks I wonder what the aggregator’s main selling point would be now?
P.S. My current aggregator also encourages mortgage advisers to run and operate their own FAP and they are charging their members $345 per month.
I hope you are right about the possibility or direct dealing with bank in the future [like with insurance.]
I am so used to aggregators that I never considered that a possibiity. Your aggregator at $345 per month sounds like the best kept secret. I would be ashamed to tell you what I have been paying for the last 3 years with a branded aggregator, you would be horrified.
I am a veteran and I have been very slow to change!
No need to apologise. I think its important mortgage advisers are made aware insurers are already happy to have direct relationships with advisers who are licensed and whom they trust. I believe it’s only a matter of time before this also applies to mortgage advisers who provide advice under their own FAP licence, us being able then to hold direct relationships with the various banks without any aggregator involvement.
Why do I believe this? Well prior to licensing’s introduction ANZ revealed their stance on FAPs to all mortgage advisers back in October 2019. Most of the various aggregators failed to pass this communication along to their members. My aggregator though clearly communicated this important news to us. If it wasn’t for some great reporting done by Phil Macalister most other mortgage advisers would not have learnt of this important development for the industry - https://www.goodreturns.co.nz/article/976515762/anz-reveals-stance-on-faps.html The other banks duly followed ANZ’s stance but again most aggregators didn’t manage to pass this news along to members. As a bank BDM said to me at the time this clearly demonstrated most aggregators weren’t acting in their mortgage advisers’ best interests.
So fast forward to November 2023 now and why are those mortgage advisers who elected to have their own Class 1 or 2 FAP licence still being forced to belong to an aggregator? Clearly aggregators even those who have encouraged their members to run and operate their own FAP licence do not want the current status quo to change. Suffice to say banks have now started calling head group agreements historically in place with the aggregators “master FAP agreements” I would be interested to learn the FMA’s stance on the banks now using this term “master FAP” I can’t seem locate this anywhere in the current FSLAA legislation.
Mortgage advisers with their own FAP licence still being forced to belong to an aggregator (aka another FAP licence holder) just so they can access the banks for their clients wanting mortgage finance is redundant within the context of who is providing the financial advice to the client. The banks may say this is a “commercial decision” that they have made but it directly contradicts their earlier stance on licencing communicated to mortgage advisers in 2019. I am sure that aggregators have also used their current payment and collection of adviser clawbacks to convince the banks to require all mortgage advisers to still to belong to an aggregator. On this subject the banks simply need to demand payment from advisers directly within 7 days or perhaps copy the insurers stance on clawbacks now and allow mortgage advisers to work off any commission owing.
To summarise there will be mortgage advisers both old and new reading this that will be getting good value from their aggregator in terms of them running a mortgage advice business. That’s great. However, I think most mortgage advisers who backed themselves to run and operate their own FAP licence recognised some time ago that aggregators don’t now demonstrate significant value to us anymore. Gone are the days of the aggregators been the only source of PI insurance for mortgage advisers and anybody can now purchase a fit for purpose CRM right off the internet. Many of us within the industry have been providing mortgage advice for over 20+ years and belonging to an aggregator now is just not something we see as adding a lot of value to our business for what they charge us each month. As a colleague of mine recently said all that his aggregator does for him now with him having his own FAP licence is pass along his commission once a week from the banks. I don’t believe that if given the opportunity those mortgage advisers with their own FAP licence would hesitate now to have a direct relationship with the banks.
P.S. check out the SHARE/Newpark home loans offer to mortgage advisers if you would like to reduce your current monthly aggregator levy.
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As another reader said the other day the biggest barrier for sole mortgage advisers in New Zealand is industry costs, and costs of compliance. Removing the annual cost of belonging to an aggregator such as TAP and what the charge is a huge saving for an adviser running his or her own business.