Sutton Group Quantum Realty, which has offices in Oakville and Mississauga, Ont., recently launched RedQ Mortgages, a private-label mortgage product.
Broker of record/president Tina Gardin says the fully digital experience promises pre-approved mortgages in four hours (especially helpful in multiple-offer scenarios), low rates, ease of use and flexibility to provide clients with the best mortgage product for them.
Sutton Group Quantum worked with a monoline lender with over $27 billion under management to create a product especially for its agents so they can offer a boutique banking experience to their clients.
Gardin says she came up with the idea before the pandemic but that COVID-19 highlighted the need for a more digital process. During beta testing, which began last fall, users provided rave testimonials about the experience, which offers fast pre-approvals so buyers know exactly what they can afford and connects them to Sutton Group Quantum’s partner mortgage brokers and underwriters.
Clients “don’t have to wait for bank approval” and it also means mortgage brokers don’t have to wait for underwriters. “It’s a streamlined process,” she says.
The 25 to 35 age group is most comfortable with the digital process, but because of the pandemic, those 60+ have also opted for the virtual process over an in-person bank visit. Everyone likes the ease of use and competitive rates, which are among the lowest in the Canadian marketplace, Gardin says.
RedQ Mortgages (“the name plays off the Sutton Group logo’s big red Q”) was officially launched in March. “It’s one of the first fully digital mortgage platforms,” she says, adding consumers can now buy and finance real estate in a fully virtual environment without ever stepping foot in a bank or meeting a mortgage broker. It handles the process right up to funding. Clients are under no obligation to use the product.
Agents can keep track of where the client is in the process and lets them offer clients a more VIP private-banking experience. She says one user asked, “Why would I ever go into a bank again?”
She says RedQ Mortgages is disruptive and interesting because the delivery platform is a brokerage.
Because it’s fully digital and offers speed and efficiency, it’s also more cost effective. Savings can be passed along to clients as perks, such as three months interest-free.
Gardin says the company is also developing other products, including some for first-time home buyers and alternative financing for self-employed buyers and those new to Canada.
“We’re trying to solve as many problems as we can for consumers in a digital way,” she says.
RedQ Mortgages is “a cool, efficient, painless vertical application. I’m not aware of anything like it. I don’t mind leading the pack.”
Sutton Group Quantum’s 180 agents can offer their clients a robust suite of products, offering a more fulsome experience with the client. That leads to more productivity and a better client experience, which in turn helps them retain that client and attract more clients, Gardin says.
RedQ mortgages is “one of the ways that could forever change the way people borrow money.”
Connie Adair is a contributing writer for REM.
