As anyone who’s self-employed will know only too well, getting a mortgage can be tough.

Sydney-based Alex experienced it first hand. A change in personal circumstances dictated she needed a new mortgage, and fast – however, this was complicated by the fact she worked for herself.

“I believed I should have been able to get a new mortgage with one of the major banks,” she says.

“I have three properties which I have mortgages on, and I needed to refinance one of them. I’d only been working for myself full-time for 12 months, though I’d worked part-time for myself for eight years. My mortgage broker told me I’d need to go with a non-bank lender.”

“My experience with mortgage brokers over recent times has been terrible and atrocious,” she says. “There’s a lot of promises – over promises – and plenty of under-delivering.”

Some non-bank lenders specialise in ‘non-conforming’ loans, and they can charge higher interest rates than traditional lenders do; something Alex found out to her cost.

“This lender was unbelievably expensive. High interest rates, high application fees, high joining fees… I was even charged by their legal team to write up the legal papers, even though it was something they needed.

“I was charged for the valuation of the properties, but then told I wasn’t entitled to look at the valuation.

“It was deeply frustrating.”

Alex had been recommended to Distinctive Finance’s Christian Goodall by her brother – and she thought she had nothing to lose by contacting him to see if he could offer a better solution.

“I sent an email, really spelling out what I was looking for and what I needed.

“I want someone who I can work with over the next 25, 30 years – it wasn’t about one mortgage.”

After repeated letdowns, expectations, by her own admission, were low.

“Christian was immediately so professional and efficient,” she says. “It was a world apart from my previous experiences. (and there had been many)

“He said he could help change my situation, and began working on a new deal. He even worked on it while he was on a trip overseas, so not to delay any progress.

“He was able to get me placed with a bank lender when the broker said I couldn’t. He’s ended up saving me almost half a million dollars overall – reducing my monthly mortgage payments by $1500. It’s a huge, huge amount, and the work Christian has done with me has made such a big difference.”

As Alex mentioned earlier, she was looking for a financial professional to work with over the long term – something Distinctive Finance believes gets the very best outcomes for all concerned.

“Christian was very keen on an ongoing relationship too, it’s not a set and forget,” she says.

“We touch base every six months, and when I come to buy another property, we’ll both be well prepared.

“He’s very open, very frank, and if he can’t deliver something, he’ll tell me straight away. He doesn’t sell a tale, he plays it completely straight, and does his very best to help get the very best outcome for me.”

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