Mortgage Brokers Raising the Floor, Not Just the Roof: Professionalism, Entry Standards and AI in Australian Broking

Mortgage brokers facilitated 77.3% of all new residential home loans in the September 2025 quarter and 76.7% in the December quarter, according to MFAA data. That market share reflects a profession that has rebuilt itself structurally over the past decade — tighter entry standards, higher ongoing education expectations, and smarter technology have collectively raised the floor of what it means to be a professional mortgage broker in Australia. This roundtable, convened by Australian Broker in partnership with Finsure, brought together six of Australia's leading brokers and aggregator representatives to examine what professional excellence actually looks like in 2026.

How has the role of a mortgage broker changed over the past decade?

A decade ago, the professional value of a mortgage broker rested largely on information asymmetry — brokers knew what rates and products were available before clients could find out for themselves. That version of the profession has been replaced by something structurally different. Vache Vartanian, founder and head broker at Hero Finance, describes the shift as moving from transactional service to long-term partnership: working alongside clients, holding their hand, acting as a genuine advocate, and structuring loans in a way that allows clients to continue growing their financial position rather than simply securing a deal at a point in time.

What entry standard changes are happening in Australian mortgage broking?

Entry into broking has historically been accessible relative to other financial services roles, with a Certificate IV in Finance and Mortgage Broking as the baseline qualification. That is shifting. Finsure, one of Australia's largest aggregators with a network of over 4,000 brokers and a loan book exceeding $175 billion, has stopped accepting new-to-industry applicants unless they have prior credit or lending experience. A diploma is now Finsure's minimum entry standard.

Noushig Megerditchian, head of sales for the northern region at Finsure, says the decision was driven by protecting the profession's reputation. Mansour Soltani, director at Soren Financial, argues the profession should go further — creating barriers to entry that screen out candidates who lack the credit understanding needed to genuinely serve clients. Paul Song, Finsure's state manager for NSW/ACT, notes the Certificate IV itself has also become materially more demanding: the qualification completed two years ago is significantly more rigorous than the version available six years prior.

Why is ongoing professional development critical for mortgage brokers in Australia?

Entry qualifications establish a floor, but the roundtable participants were equally focused on what happens after licensing. Lender policies, products, and compliance requirements change continuously. Kristy Atkins, director and finance broker at Parity Capital, is direct about the consequences: brokers who rely on what they learned during their initial qualification will get left behind because lenders are changing on a daily basis. Ongoing professional development is not optional — it is the difference between staying relevant and becoming obsolete.

Megerditchian identifies a consistent pattern at Finsure: the brokers investing in themselves every month — not just annually — are the most successful. Song sees the aggregator's role as providing that infrastructure: regular lender webinars, PD days, conferences, and education resources. Sally Prowse, founder of Sandcastle Finance, has formalised this at a brokerage level by scheduling a lender visit every second Wednesday. Atkins also highlights cross-referral between brokers as an underused form of development, particularly for those seeking to expand into commercial lending where formal training pathways are limited.

What does the broker's responsibility to clients look like beyond loan settlement?

The most substantive shift in how brokers now define their role is the expectation that the relationship continues well after settlement. Trail commissions have always implied an ongoing obligation, but the best brokers describe something closer to financial coaching. Soltani's business runs client webinars, connects clients with financial planners, and shows amortisation tables so clients understand the long-term impact of extra repayments. His firm deliberately avoids referral fee arrangements, positioning itself around client outcomes rather than commercial relationships.

Prowse is involved in a financial literacy program being introduced into schools, seeing it as a natural extension of the broker's community responsibility. Vartanian's firm uses automated alerts to trigger pricing reviews at the six-month anniversary of every loan. Atkins notes that this level of ongoing service creates a direct commercial opportunity: brokers who do not review, check in, or inform clients of better options are generating business for those who do.

How is artificial intelligence changing mortgage broking in Australia?

A CreditorWatch annual business sentiment survey found 95% satisfaction with AI return on investment among financial and business services firms that have adopted it, with AI adoption rates of 49% and 53% respectively in the year to September 2025. The roundtable participants see AI as the next layer of professional differentiation. Soltani's business built its own automated pricing review tool using a no-code app builder — something that would have required a developer and significant budget a few years ago. Song points to the reality that clients are already using AI tools such as ChatGPT to find brokers: a broker who is not visible and credible in AI-generated search results is effectively invisible to an increasingly large segment of prospective clients.

How should mortgage brokers think about professional identity and business standards?

The roundtable returned repeatedly to a distinction between brokers who run a business and brokers who do a job. Finsure will not onboard brokers operating on generic email addresses — a domain-based email is treated as a basic signal of professional seriousness. Soltani charges fees for complex work and is explicit about this from the outset, arguing that a service perceived as free is not respected. Song sees the best interests duty not as a compliance burden but as the natural outcome of asking the right questions about each client's unique situation and recommending lenders genuinely suited to their needs. Vartanian is optimistic that better technology and tighter compliance will accelerate the sorting of the profession, weeding out unethical or underqualified brokers and improving overall trust in the channel over the next two to five years.

What is Finsure and what does it offer Australian mortgage brokers?

Established in 2011, Finsure is one of Australia's largest mortgage broking aggregators with a network of over 4,000 brokers and a loan book exceeding $175 billion. A technology-enabled, scalable aggregator with an international presence, Finsure provides brokers with education, business support, lender access, professional development infrastructure, PD days, conferences, and lender webinars across its national broker network.

Roundtable participants

Vache Vartanian — founder, director and head broker, Hero Finance. Specialises in complex scenarios and long-term property portfolio structuring. Former Westpac and Citibank. Founder of The Mortgage Club and Fincheck anti-fraud software.

Mansour Soltani — director, Soren Financial. Regular media contributor to ABC, Domain and Australian Broker. Specialises in clear, structured lending advice for complex client scenarios.

Kristy Atkins — director and finance broker, Parity Capital. Over 15 years in business and commercial banking. Specialises in residential, asset, commercial and investment finance.

Sally Prowse — founder and managing director, Sandcastle Finance. Over 20 years' industry experience. Specialises in strategic lending, property investment structuring and supporting women and self-employed clients. MFAA-accredited mentor.

Noushig Megerditchian — head of sales, northern region, Finsure. 15 years in third-party distribution. Co-chairwoman of Women in Finsure.

Paul Song — state manager NSW/ACT, Finsure. Leads relationship management for over 2,000 Finsure members across NSW and ACT.