MyCRA Specialist Credit Repair Lawyers

Tag: Australian Broker

Harvest Your Future Business…In The Busy Times

Are you writing a lot more business than you used to? You’re not alone. Being flat out has its obvious advantages – number one being you don’t have to worry about where your next deal’s coming from. But while business is good, it’s easy to forget that times have recently been tough.

There are some important habits you can form now while business is flowing well, that will separate you from the pack, and ensure that you always reap the rewards -whatever the market conditions are.

By Graham Doessel, Non-Legal Director MyCRA Lawyers.

In Australian Broker yesterday, it was reported that brokers are seeing a big boost in their market share – up to on average 46% of all home loans in the three months to the end of September.This compares to about 40 per cent 18 months ago and a low of 38 per cent during the global financial crisis.

Great news – but brokers can do some really important things to make sure this trend is not temporary.While you have more clients on your books, build a plan to keep in touch with them NOW – yes, now, during the busy times. You might as well start when you have plenty of clients.

But let’s talk about content. What do we keep in touch about?

In my experience as a broker, I found there are four main areas of interest to your clients:

1. Themselves.

How much do you know about your client? Keep in touch on their birthday; when their house anniversary comes around; when you have a new product or service which might interest them; or any old time you’re thinking of them. Personal correspondence is always endearing.

2. Their footprint in the market.

Most clients would be interested in what the housing market is doing in their area, and how they are faring in comparison to others in their area. Likewise, information on their business and investment markets will also be well received.

3. Opportunities they can take to be better.

New products or services which will enhance your client’s lives, or cut the length of their mortgage down would always be of interest. Whilst understandably many brokers can’t give financial advice to their clients, they can give the benefit of their experience and their knowledge to tell their clients something they didn’t know.

Do you forsee interest rates as having a major positive impact on most of your existing clients? Should your bad credit clients look at getting into the market sooner rather than later? Is there someone you can put your clients in touch with who can enhance their lives?

4. How you’ve helped them.

When your client has saved thousands because you have helped them find a professional to repair their credit rating before you’ve fitted them into a loan, tell them. When you helped them find a loan that was right for them that ended up being the best long-term choice, tell them. If they’ve saved thousands over the years because you found them a more competitive interest rate, tell them.

Actually pointing out what you are doing or what you’ve done may seem obvious, but it may not be so for many of your clients. Showing them where they are saving money, where they could go wrong, and how your extra effort and experience is going to benefit them will mean they feel confident about the decisions they’ve made, and more willing to make another one under your guidance next time.

So keep in touch now, and create those habits that will weather any storm.

We would like to extend our thanks to the many brokers who have allowed us to help them create business in their future, by looking after their clientele with credit rating issues and inconsistencies. We are so happy to hear many have gone back to their brokers to be fitted into a better product, and saved thousands. The loyalty amongst your clients is unmistakable – and that’s reaping real rewards.

Call MyCRA Lawyers today on 1300 667 218 and find out how credit repair will work for your clients. Also ask about our generous broker referral system.

Image: zirconicusso/www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

19/11/2013
Interest rates cut to record lows at 2.5%

The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut its cash rate to a low 2.5% – lower than during the GFC. The Sydney Morning Herald says several banks wasted no time in passing on the rates cut to their home loan customers. National Australia Bank and Bank of Queensland said they would both pass on today’s 0.25 percentage point cut in interest rates to the home loan customers in full. This is good news for home buyers with a good deposit and a good clean credit file – but maybe not such great news in the long term for the Australian economy.

By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repair and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

As Australian Broker reported today, the speech made late last week by RBA governor, Glenn Stevens, also indicated another rate reduction was on the cards, with Stevens admitting the RBA was becoming increasingly concerned about major areas of the Australian economy, particularly the passing of mining and credit growth ‘booms’.

Many brokers will be taking this information straight to clients, as 1st Street Home Loans founding director, Jeremy Fisher, outlined in an interview with Australian Broker earlier today.

“First and foremost, we’ll get in touch with any clients that are due to settle and looking at making any necessary changes to their loans. And then we’ll go back and review any clients that are, I guess, a ‘watchlist’. So it’s pretty much just keeping our clients informed of the change.”

Fisher said 1st Street sends out a bulletin to all their clients immediately following RBA cash rate announcements in order to keep them updated.

“Then we just go back to our watchlist and touch base with everyone that’s kind of doing things as we speak – because that may or may not influence what they’re doing.”

Mr Stevens told the Sydney Morning Herald he expected the Australian economy to continue to grow below trend in the near term as mining investment falls, and for inflation to remain consistent with the medium-term target as labour costs moderated.

He added that the Australian dollar remained “at a high level” despite losing about 15 per cent of its value since early April, and welcomed a further depreciation of the exchange rate to help foster a rebalancing of growth in the economy.

Several analysts said the RBA could ease rates again later this year as the country continues to grapple with a slowing economy amid an uneven transition away from mining-led growth.

Taking advantage of interest rate cuts.

With this interest rate cut, we feel it is worthwhile to ramp up our education efforts around credit history. Many people do not know what a credit file is – many more don’t know the process for being listed with bad credit, and more again assume that if there was something amiss with their credit file, that they would somehow be informed. They don’t realise that the onus is on them to check their credit history on a regular basis (at least once per year) just to make sure that errors have not been made on the credit file. Errors can happen to anyone – from all walks of life.

People may believe their credit history is clean, but creditors can and do make mistakes with credit reports, and often it is not until people apply for finance that they have any idea they have bad credit. At this time the process of investigation and complaint can be stressful and can sometimes mean the prospective borrower misses out on the home loan while the discrepancy is addressed.

The process of clearing an unfair credit listing can sometimes be very time consuming – especially if the creditor has not cooperated with requests to supply documentation in a timely fashion, or the matter has to be referred to a third party for investigation.

So the message is, if people are thinking about buying a home in the near future – they should check their credit report first, and make sure it has the “all clear” before they apply for finance, and before they get their hearts set on any particular home. This is free for all credit active Australians once every year and we encourage any home buyer to request a copy of their credit report. It takes 10 working days or for a fee to the credit reporting agency, it can be sent urgently. But what it does is give peace of mind – not only to the Purchaser, but to the Broker or Bank Manager, and in some cases a clear credit file can help get the deal over the line with the Agent and Seller.

If there are any inconsistencies or out and out errors on the credit file, the advantage to getting those removed is generally thousands and thousands of dollars in interest saved by being able to take advantage of those interest rate cuts with the mainstream lender of the buyer’s choice.

To find out more about the benefits of using a credit rating repairer to dispute credit listings, contact a Credit Repair Advisor at MyCRA Credit Rating Repairs on 1300 667 218 or visit the main site for more information www.mycra.com.au.

Image: renjith krishnan/ www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

06/08/2013
More people losing their homes due to mortgage stress

Statistics are pointing to an increase in distressed sales in some areas of Australia. We look at what’s happening in the property market. We also cover what you can do if you find yourself in hot water with your mortgage so you can prevent credit defaults, and especially – losing your home to the bank or to liquidators.

By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repair and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

An alarming article showed up in Australian Broker yesterday, ‘Fresh data shows shocking number of distressed sales.’ The article revealed that nearly a quarter of all properties advertised in Australia are distressed sales. The upsetting figures were released by valuation group LandMark White. Here’s the rest of that article in full:

The research shows Queensland accounted for a massive 54% of properties advertised by a mortgagee, receiver or liquidator during the March quarter – and the Gold Coast recorded the highest number of distressed property advertisements in the country, with 74% of its listings made by a mortgagee, receiver or liquidator in the three months to March 31 – despite recent claims the region’s housing market is back on its feet.

Nationally, most receiver sales were in regional areas, with residential property falling just ahead of the agricultural sector.

LandMark White found almost 23% of properties advertised in Australia during the quarter were listed by a mortgagee, receiver or liquidator.

Of those, 19% were in the residential sector, 16% in industrial and 15% in retail.

Nearly 10% were in New South Wales and 15% in Victoria.

NSW saw the most positive change, as only 7% of all properties advertised in that state were listed by a receiver or mortgagee – a record low. By comparison, the proportion in the same quarter of 2012 was 31%, according to a News Ltd report.

Although the distressed ratio in Queensland dropped by 6%, it remains high at 39% of all property advertisements in the state. Victoria saw the smallest improvement in the distressed ratio, with a drop from 20% to 19%, which meant that for the first time in the series, Victoria had a higher ratio than NSW.

What can I do if I am experiencing mortgage stress?

It depends on how deep the ‘do do’ is that you’re in as to what your plan of attack will be.

If you’re just struggling to make ends meet, but you are managing to keep up with payments (just) – then you might start looking around for a cheaper interest rate to give you a bit of savings. You could check with your bank or research other banks (but don’t make any credit applications until you’re sure) to see if you can find an interest rate that will reduce your repayments.

Sydney Morning Herald story Tell them to cut you a break, gives great advice on making the most of bank competition to grab a cheaper interest rate:

If your loan is with a big bank and you’re paying the advertised interest rate, you’re being ripped off. It used to be that customers who knew to ask could secure 70 basis points off that rate, but in recent competitive times, that discount has leapt to as much as 100 basis points.

You won’t be able to get any reduction from one of the new breed of online lenders; it’s their cut-price rates that are forcing discounting elsewhere. But banks, and even some building societies and credit unions, will have wiggle room. The beauty of this information is that you could use it to make an instant saving with your lender, sparing you from having to remortgage.

If your struggle is more serious, and you really are having trouble finding money to make repayments each month, then it’s time to tell your bank. You need to do this before you default on your home loan, to ensure you are not penalised by a default listing on your credit rating. Despite this, if you are consistently late with your mortgage payments, this will show on your credit record from next year – so it is best to make paying your mortgage or any other bank-related credit an absolute priority to avoid that late repayment history from holding you back in the future if you get back on your feet.

How do I apply for a revised repayment schedule with my bank to avoid a default?

Firstly, you need to make it clear to your bank that you fear if you aren’t able to restructure your home loan repayments that you may fall into arrears. If you have a situation of temporary difficulty, such as unemployment, illness, injury or other reasonable issue which would mean making repayments will be difficult, this is essential to do. You will be requesting a financial hardship variation to your repayments. This may mean your repayments are reduced accordingly and the lender may take action to stop a potential default on your credit file.

Tips for Applying for financial hardship

– Work out what you can afford to pay prior to requesting a hardship variation. This would involve taking the bull by the horns and doing up a serious budget on what’s coming in and what your repayments are on all of your credit accounts. Could burying your head in the sand be the main reason why you find yourself in this situation in the first place? If so, it would be a great idea to seek professional help in managing your budget for your entire future. The best place to start looking for some help would be ASIC’s MoneySmart Website. If you feel like you’ll struggle across a number of credit areas in the short term – consider requesting a reduced payment for other credit accounts as well.

– Put your request in writing and keep a copy as a record.

– You may need to use the actual words “hardship variation” for your lender to officially recognise the request, and to avoid confusion as to what you’re asking for.

– Check your loan agreement as to the terms you entered into around financial hardship. Those agreements post-1 July 2010 have a clause which requires the lender to respond to you within 21 days.

– Creditors are legally required to consider a person’s request for variation on payment arrangements, but are not obliged to agree to any hardship variation proposal put forward. If a lender either refuses or fails to respond to your hardship request, you can lodge a complaint with their independent dispute resolution scheme, such as the Ombudsman they are a member of.

– Research how to apply for financial hardship. You can do this through ASIC’s MoneySmart Website, or through sites like Money Help, a website run by the Victorian State Government.

Is it time to sell the house?

If your financial situation is not going away any time soon – it may be time to look at downsizing your home or even renting for a while. “Gasp, shock, horror…weren’t you trying to save my home?” you say.

But having the power to sell your home at the best price in the current market is what you’re really trying to save. So it might pay to think seriously and clearly about whether you are going to be able to carry the loan long term.

If you end up at the mercy of any distressed sale, you may find the banks are only interested in getting back what they are owed on the property – and through lost time, or different sales tactics, you could find you sell for a lot less than you might if you had control of the sale yourself. So as hard as it might be, you could save your credit file, and save your family thousands by letting go now.

The above information is intended for general purposes, and should not replace getting considered and careful advice based on your individual circumstances. We recommend you seek financial counselling and or legal advice before making this type of financial decision.

For help with recovering your credit rating following a period of financial hardship, or help with disputing credit listings which are holding you back from obtaining credit, contact a Credit Repair Advisor at MyCRA on 1300 667 218 to talk about your situation.

Image: artur84/ www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

23/04/2013
Flood affected? Ask for help early to protect your credit rating

As flood and cyclone victims across Queensland and New South Wales start to take stock of their homes and businesses, they may not know that their obligations to lenders still apply unless they take some necessary steps NOW to prevent being defaulted. We look at what flood victims should do to get back on their feet again and in the process, hopefully save their credit file.

By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repair and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

Today the Credit Ombudsman COSL has urged lenders to show compassion to flood victims when considering cases of financial hardship.

Ombudsman Raj Venga says lenders and mortgage managers have previously responded sympathetically to borrowers who have experienced financial stress as a result of natural disasters and hopes they will continue to do so.

“We expect they will again show the same compassion to affected borrowers in Queensland and northern New South Wales, and take into account COSL’s Position Statement on financial hardship. We also urge borrowers who may be experiencing financial difficulties as a result of the flooding to contact their lenders or mortgage managers as soon as possible to discuss payment variation options available to them,” he said in Australian Broker today.

How could I be affected by defaulting on my loan?

Obviously, if you default on your loan for a certain period of time, you risk the bank taking the home. But even if you default once, but then begin to make up the repayments you are still putting your future at risk.

If you fail to make repayments on our loan past one payment cycle, you will probably end up with a late payment notation on your credit file. If that extends out to more than 60 days, the bank will list a default on your credit file. Once you have a default against your name – it will stay there for 5 years. The intention of adding default credit listings to credit history is to warn future credit providers you would potentially have trouble keeping up with repayments. Likewise, as part of ‘responsible lending’ it would mean the credit provider would be acting irresponsibly to lend you money – so most don’t.

A default on your credit file means you have very little access to mainstream credit for the five year term.

What can I do if I am experiencing mortgage stress due to the storms and or floods?

Ask for help early!

The Australian Bankers’ Association (ABA) told Australian Broker banks are already offering a range of emergency relief packages to assist people affected by the severe weather in Queensland and New South Wales.

Steven Münchenberg, chief executive of the ABA, says:

“If someone’s home, income or business has been affected by the floods or storms, they should contact their bank as soon as they are able to. Banks are providing support to help their customers get back on their feet.”

Banks offer a range of support options and the assistance provided will depend on their individual circumstances and needs, but may include:

■ deferring home loan repayments;

■ restructuring business loans without incurring fees;

■ giving credit card holders an emergency credit limit increase;

■ providing payment holidays on personal loans or credit cards;

■ refinancing loans at a discounted fixed rate;

■ waiving interest rate penalties if term deposits are drawn early; and

■ deferring repayments on equipment finance facilities.

“If you are worried about the financial effect of the flooding and storms, talk to your bank about the support that is available. It is often not well understood that banks do offer their customers assistance during these difficult times and go beyond what might be legally required to offer immediate financial relief and support to affected customers and their communities. If you know someone affected, let them know that banks are offering emergency packages,” Mr Münchenberg says.

“The best way to contact your bank is to speak to your relationship manager or call the bank’s dedicated emergency relief or financial hardship support number. These numbers can be found on the ABA website www.bankers.asn.au or at www.doingittough.info along with additional information to assist people that might be experiencing financial difficulty. You can also speak to a free, independent financial counsellor by calling 1800 007 007.”

Tips for Applying for financial hardship

– Work out what you can afford to pay prior to requesting a hardship variation. This would involve taking the bull by the horns and doing up a serious budget on what’s coming in and what your repayments are on all of your credit accounts. The best place to start looking for some help would be ASIC’s MoneySmart Website. If you feel like you’ll struggle across a number of credit areas in the short term – consider requesting a reduced payment for other credit accounts as well.

– Put your request in writing and keep a copy as a record.

– You may need to use the actual words “hardship variation” for your lender to officially recognise the request, and to avoid confusion as to what you’re asking for.

– Check your loan agreement as to the terms you entered into around financial hardship. Those agreements post-1 July 2010 have a clause which requires the lender to respond to you within 21 days.

– Creditors are legally required to consider a person’s request for variation on payment arrangements, but are not obliged to agree to any hardship variation proposal put forward. If a lender either refuses or fails to respond to your hardship request, you can lodge a complaint with their independent dispute resolution scheme, such as the Ombudsman they are a member of.

– Research how to apply for financial hardship. You can do this through ASIC’s MoneySmart Website, or through sites like Money Help, a website run by the Victorian State Government.

Image: khuruzero/ www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

31/01/2013
New Credit Rating Repair Industry Body CRIAA positive step for Brokers and consumers

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UPDATE: The CRIAA has been shut down by Founder Graham Doessel, due to non-compliance of unlicensed credit repair agencies with their own code of conduct. Mr Doessel realised that if these unlicensed credit repair agencies could not follow their own code of conduct, he as the founder of the CRIAA had no alternative but to shut it down to protect the community.

“I’m deeply disappointed at having to take such decisive action, but as the CEO of Australia’s only true Specialist Credit Repair Law firm, I have no choice but to distance myself from possible rogue operators that refuse to take the CRIAA Code of Conduct, and associated laws seriously.” Mr Doessel said.

The CRIAA was closed in 2014.

It is exciting to see where the credit rating repair industry is heading and I am proud to be a part of the formulation of a new industry body which will improve credit rating repair across the board for Australasia. Australian Broker magazine published an article today on this new industry body the Credit Repair Industry Association of Australasia (CRIAA) of which I am an executive member. We held our first meetings yesterday, chaired by Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA) President Peter White, and it was a great success.

The Australian Broker story was titled The CRIAA to make tough times for dodgy operators by Adam Smith. Here’s the story in its entirety:

CRIAA to make tough times for dodgy operators

Self-regulation of the credit repair industry could involve brokers, and ultimately benefit their clients.

The burgeoning Credit Repair Industry Association of Australasia has held its first meetings, and executive member Graham Doessel, founder of credit repair agency MyCRA, said the formation of the industry body should help put brokers at ease.

Doessel said the CRIAA would look to institute a code of conduct and minimum qualifications for the credit repair industry, and that introducing these standards would give brokers peace of mind about working with credit repair agencies.

“Mortgage brokers referring to a CRIAA member can have more confidence that the work is done correctly, and therefore it protects their reputation and the money of their clients,” Doessel said.

Doessel said the agency had sought help from ASIC and the FBAA in drafting its code of conduct and standards, and had received strong interest from credit reporting agencies. He commented that brokers may even be invited to become members of the association.

“We’re trying to set it up to be the genuine representative body of the industry and all its stakeholders, so we’re not going to be exclusive. We’ll be looking at inviting mortgage brokers who refer clients to credit repair agencies. They’re directly affected and I think their inclusion is a good idea,” he said.

Doessel conceded that the credit repair industry had seen disreputable operators, and said the formation of an industry body could stem the tide of unethical businesses by introducing an industry standard.

“Any good credit repair firm works within the legislation and makes sure the creditor works within the legislation. The CRIAA is hoping we will ensure that all members have minimum qualifications and workflow standards,” he said.

Ultimately, Doessel said he hoped the formation of the CRIAA helped to raise the reputation of credit repair agencies.

“We’re looking to make it harder for less reputable businesses to operate effectively,” he said.

About the Credit Repair Industry Association of Australasia (CRIAA)

The Credit Repair Industry Association of Australasia (CRIAA) has been established as the result of an identified need to increase transparency and professionalism across the credit repair industry as a whole.

The key aim of the CRIAA is to provide a strong and consistent foundation for credit repair clients in an industry that has been largely unregulated and lacking formal standards.

The CRIAA is in the process of establishing a ‘quality service’ framework for consumers, enhanced by best practice operational standards. This ensures members conduct themselves with high standards and ethics, based on the Association’s code of conduct.

The CRIAA aims to deliver some significant benefits to consumers which have not been available before from the credit rating repair industry.

Consumers should be able to confidently select an ethical and reputable credit rating repair company or organisation to look after their personal affairs from the CRIAA member companies.

A code of ethics is vital for the credit rating repair industry. The credit rating repairer is privy to a large volume of personal information from consumers. A code of ethics upheld by CRIAA members will increase the likelihood high standards of privacy are upheld, minimising the instances of fraud and breaches of privacy.

The CRIAA ‘quality service’ blue-print, will mean consumers can expect a higher level of service from those CRIAA members. Input on service standards will be provided by key CRIAA members from both inside and outside the credit rating repair industry.

The CRIAA seeks to have an influence on decisions of credit reporting law moving forward – whether directly or indirectly. The aim is to increase the legislative voice for those who are ultimately responsible for ensuring credit reporting accuracy. This voice belongs to consumers and the credit rating repairers who act on their behalf.

By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repairs and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

Image: cooldesign/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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26/04/2012