Mortgage Choice rejects YBR 'sub-segment' claims

In a statement issued yesterday, Mr Russell said mortgage brokers should not fall victim to attempting to become a "jack of all trades", arguing the two sectors are staunchly independent of each other.

“While there are some mortgage brokers who successfully offer financial advice as well as home loan advice, the two professions require different skill sets, which is recognised by the fact there are two governing sets of legislation,” he said.

“As such, we firmly believe it is in the consumers’ best interests for mortgage brokers and financial advisers to operate as specialists.”

While it does not mention YBR directly, Mr Russell’s statement follows ifa's publication of comments made by Mr Lawler, which stated that mortgage broking is a "sub-segment" of financial planning.

The Mortgage Choice boss said that it makes sense for mortgage brokers and financial advisers to work closely together, especially considering that mortgage broking customers are often making the biggest financial commitment of their lives and they need to ensure both their new asset and their personal risks are protected.

“Our customers have also told us that they would prefer not to disclose their personal financial information over and over again to various service providers,” he said.

“They value the convenience of dealing with a specialist mortgage broker and financial adviser operating under the one trusted brand.”