Blog Summary Deep Dive
The Indispensable Tech Stack
An analysis of the 5 tools powering Australia’s most successful mortgage brokers. The new competitive battleground is forged in code.
Why Technology is a Retention Tool
The quality of an aggregator’s technology platform has become a primary driver of broker recruitment and retention, second only to commission.
Data from the 2024 Brokers on Aggregators survey reveals that “poor IT and CRM support” is a critical factor for brokers when deciding to leave their aggregator.
The 5-Layer Integrated Tech Stack
Top brokers don’t just use apps; they architect an ecosystem. Each layer integrates seamlessly to create a powerful, efficient, and compliant data flow from client onboarding to long-term retention.
The Modern Broker Workflow
Secure Document & Data Collection
Client uploads files and enters data via a secure, branded portal.
Centralised CRM & Workflow
Data populates the CRM, triggering automated tasks, compliance checks, and communication.
Assessment & Lodgement
Use integrated calculators, run compliance, and push data to ApplyOnline.
Continuous AI-Powered Retention
The CRM data feeds an AI engine that constantly monitors the loan book for repricing and refinancing opportunities, protecting trail and delighting clients.
1The Central Nervous System: CRM & Workflow
This is the broker’s operating system, the single source of truth that dictates efficiency and scalability. The choice between an aggregator-provided platform and a bespoke system is the first and most critical tech decision.
| Platform Type | Key Advantage | Example(s) | Ideal For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aggregator Platform | Deep integration with lender panels, compliance, and commission systems. | MyCRM, Mercury Nexus | Brokers seeking a turnkey, integrated ecosystem. |
| Bespoke Platform | Maximum flexibility, workflow customisation, and portability. | BrokerEngine, Salestrekker | Growth-focused firms prioritising process optimisation. |
2The Efficiency Engine: Serviceability Calculator
Top brokers have abandoned manual spreadsheets, instead using a single tool to run calculations across dozens of lenders at once, saving hours per deal.
of Australian brokers use Quickli daily.
Maximum time saved per complex deal.
3The Retention Fortress: AI-Powered Repricing
AI engines now automatically monitor the trail book to combat the “loyalty tax,” proactively securing better rates for clients and protecting the business’s most valuable asset.
With Sherlok, brokers achieve an
average rate reduction for their clients.
This turns a defensive chore into a proactive, value-adding service that builds immense loyalty.
4The Digital Handshake: Secure Document Portal
Emailing sensitive financial documents is a major security risk. Modern portals provide a professional, secure, and efficient “digital handshake” for clients.
❌ The Old Way (Email)
- Unsecure & unencrypted
- Confusing for clients
- Manual file organisation
- High cyber risk
✅ The New Way (Portal)
- Bank-grade encryption
- Clear, guided process
- Automated organisation
- Mitigates compliance risk
5The Final Mile: Compliance & Lodgement
The entire stack converges here, pushing clean, verified data into the industry-standard submission platform, ensuring a compliant and error-reduced final step.
Broker usage of NextGen’s ApplyOnline platform.
The Indispensable Tech Stack: 5 Tools Powering Australia’s Top Mortgage Brokers
Introduction: The New Competitive Battleground is Forged in Code
The conversation in Australian mortgage broking has fundamentally shifted. For decades, success was a relatively simple equation of relationships plus hard work. Today, that formula is dangerously incomplete.
In a market where brokers now originate a staggering 71.7% of all new residential home loans, the battle for market share, client loyalty, and profitability is no longer won on the golf course or through sheer force of will alone; it is won and lost on the efficiency of the back office and the quality of the digital client experience.
Table of Contents
- The Central Nervous System: Your Workflow & CRM Platform
- The Efficiency Engine: The Multi-Lender Serviceability Calculator
- The Retention Fortress: The Automated Repricing & Review Tool
- The Digital Handshake: The Secure Document Collection Portal
- The Final Mile: The Integrated Compliance & Lodgement System
The market realities of 2025 are creating a confluence of unprecedented pressure and opportunity. A widely anticipated series of interest rate adjustments is expected to trigger a surge in refinancing activity, putting millions of borrowers in play. Simultaneously, the industry is experiencing intense competition from a growing number of new entrants drawn to the profession’s flexibility and earning potential.
Critical Market Reality: For the individual broker, this translates into a significant time crunch. Many are rushed off their feet, struggling to scale their operations due to the immense weight of administrative burdens and inefficient, disconnected processes. In this environment, technology is not just an advantage; it is the only viable solution.
An analysis of Australia’s most successful and highest-performing brokers reveals a critical distinction. They are not merely using disparate software applications; they are strategically architecting an integrated technology stack. This report deconstructs the five non-negotiable layers of this stack, revealing the specific tools and platforms that top brokers are using to automate processes, retain clients, and dominate the market.
Step 1: The Central Nervous System – Your Workflow & CRM Platform
At the very foundation of any modern, high-performing brokerage lies its Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and workflow platform. This is the central nervous system, the “Broker Operating System” that dictates the business’s capacity to scale, its efficiency, and its ability to deliver a consistent client experience.
Why This Matters
The quality of this foundational system directly impacts every subsequent function, from deal throughput and team morale to, most critically, compliance and broker retention. The significance of this platform has grown to the point where “poor IT and CRM support” is now the second-leading cause (cited by 55% of brokers) for leaving an aggregator, surpassed only by issues with commission payments.
The Strategic Divide: Bespoke vs. Aggregator Platforms
The first and most consequential technology decision a broker or brokerage principal makes is the choice of their core platform. This decision typically falls into one of two categories:
Aggregator-Provided Platforms: The Integrated Ecosystem
Aggregator platforms offer the significant advantage of being deeply embedded within the aggregator’s broader ecosystem, providing seamless connections to lender panels, commission processing systems, and integrated compliance support.
Key Players in the Aggregator Platform Space:
- LMG’s MyCRM: Markets itself as the “#1 software solution in the broker industry,” built around a “compliance-by-design” philosophy. Recently launched MyCRM Diversified for integrated residential, commercial, and asset finance management.
- Connective’s Mercury Nexus: Award-winning platform with strong focus on client journey and efficient data management through Client Centre and Doc Centre features.
- AFG’s Suite360 & BrokerEngine Plus: Comprehensive integrated technology suite with the 2021 acquisition of BrokerEngine, saving brokers up to 90 minutes per deal.
Bespoke Platforms: The Independent Powerhouses
Bespoke platforms are typically aggregator-agnostic, offering brokers greater flexibility and portability should they choose to switch groups. These systems are often lauded for being more agile and broker-centric.
Leading Independent Platforms:
- BrokerEngine: Consistently praised for powerful and highly customisable workflows. Trusted by over 3,000 mortgage professionals across all major aggregators.
- Salestrekker: Known for highly visual workflow and project boards with integrated communication tools. The recent Salestrekker 2.0 launch represents over 80,000 development hours of investment.
| Feature | BrokerEngine | Salestrekker 2.0 | MyCRM (LMG) | Mercury Nexus (Connective) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key Differentiator | Deep workflow customisation; built “by a broker, for brokers” | Visual project boards & all-in-one communication suite | “Compliance-by-design” & integrated diversification tools | Client-centric data collection via Client & Doc Centres |
| Workflow Customisation | High. Map software to your exact processes | High. Customisable with conditional automation | Moderate. Streamlined with pre-built compliance steps | Moderate. Tailored workflows with standard operations focus |
| Integrated Comms | Email & SMS via workflows; Office365/Google integration | Very High. Integrated VoIP, SMS, email, live chat, video | Standard CRM communication tools | Branded emails and SMS from platform |
| Document Portal | FinanceVault™ included at no extra cost | Customisable Client Portal | Secure document management with privacy consent | Doc Centre for dynamic document requests |
| Ideal Broker Profile | Growth-focused firms prioritising scalability | Brokers seeking visual, all-in-one platform | LMG brokers looking to diversify | Connective brokers prioritising data accuracy |
Step 2: The Efficiency Engine – Multi-Lender Serviceability Calculator
Historically, the preliminary assessment and serviceability calculation stage has been one of the most significant time sinks and operational bottlenecks in the entire broking process. It was a tedious, frustrating, and error-prone task that involved manually entering the same client data into dozens of different, often clunky, lender-provided spreadsheets.
The Game Changer: Top-performing brokers have almost universally abandoned this archaic practice. Instead, they have adopted a single, specialised tool that allows them to run complex calculations across a vast panel of lenders simultaneously, saving hours on every deal.
The Undisputed Champion: Quickli
In the Australian market, one tool has achieved near-ubiquitous adoption and has become the de facto industry standard for this critical function: Quickli.
Quickli by the Numbers
- Used by over 70% of Australia’s mortgage brokers daily
- Created over 2 million unique scenarios
- User base of nearly 12,000 brokers
- Saves brokers 20 minutes to 2 hours per deal
The Multifaceted Value Proposition
1. Elimination of Redundancy: Instead of wrestling with multiple lender calculators, brokers enter the client’s data once to see a clear, comparable view of servicing outcomes across more than 45 lenders.
2. Embedded Policy Intelligence: Quickli is far more than a simple calculator; it is an intelligence engine. As it runs the numbers, it simultaneously provides crucial, lender-specific policy tips and actively flags potential “trip-ups”.
3. Seamless Workflow Integration: Quickli integrates directly with leading CRM platforms, including BrokerEngine and LMG’s MyCRM, allowing client data to be pushed directly into a new scenario with a single click.
4. An Expanding Ecosystem: Quickli now offers a suite of white-label widgets that brokers can embed directly onto their own websites for powerful lead capture and initial client engagement.
Market Signal: The meteoric rise of Quickli demonstrates a powerful market demand for specialised, best-in-class solutions. Despite major aggregators investing millions in comprehensive platforms, brokers are still choosing to pay for a separate tool if it’s demonstrably superior. This points to the future of the broker tech stack as a hybrid model: a central CRM hub connected via APIs to best-in-class “spoke” applications.
Step 3: The Retention Fortress – Automated Repricing & Review Tool
In a dynamic and competitive mortgage market, client acquisition is only half the battle. Long-term profitability, business stability, and, ultimately, the valuation of a brokerage are intrinsically linked to client retention.
The Strategic Shift
The most strategic brokers are no longer relying on sporadic, manual reviews of their trail book. They are leveraging the power of artificial intelligence to automate the entire process of client retention, transforming what was once a defensive, time-consuming chore into a proactive, value-adding, and revenue-protecting service.
The Category Creator: Sherlok
At the forefront of this transformation is Sherlok, recognized as Australia’s first and only automated repricing and home loan refinancing tool. Built by an award-winning mortgage broker to solve the core problem of the “loyalty tax”.
How Sherlok’s AI Engine Works
1. Predictive Analytics: The platform’s AI makes two critical predictions:
- When a specific client is paying too much interest relative to the market
- When that client’s behaviour indicates they are at a high risk of churning
2. Automated Repricing: Once the AI identifies a clear repricing opportunity, it can automatically contact the client’s current lender on the broker’s behalf to negotiate a lower interest rate.
Real Results: Brokers using Sherlok achieve an average rate reduction of 0.46% for their clients, translating into thousands of dollars in annual interest savings per loan.
The Strategic Impact
Three-Fold Benefits
- Protecting the Trail Book: Acts as an automated fortress around the broker’s trail book, combating client runoff that erodes recurring income.
- Proactive Client Service: Transforms the broker from reactive to proactive, consistently monitoring and securing better deals for clients.
- Generating New Business: Identifies high-value refinancing opportunities and packages them as qualified leads.
The emergence of Sherlok reveals a crucial truth about the role of AI in mortgage broking. While general AI tools like ChatGPT are noted for utility in low-level tasks, Sherlok demonstrates that AI’s most immediate value lies in automating high-value, data-intensive functions that are impossible for humans to perform at scale.
Step 4: The Digital Handshake – Secure Document Collection Portal
The document collection phase is a critical “moment of truth” in the client journey. It is often the first point of intensive, practical interaction between the client and the brokerage’s back-office systems.
The Modern Standard: Elite brokerages have moved decisively away from email as their primary collection tool. They now use dedicated, secure client portals to provide a seamless, professional, and safe “digital handshake.”
The Integrated Champion: FinanceVault
A prime example of a modern, deeply integrated solution is FinanceVault, the secure client portal that comes included with the BrokerEngine workflow platform.
Key Features of Modern Document Portals
- Security: “Gold standard” encryption for data in transit and at rest, with automatic TFN redaction
- Efficiency: Eliminates email sifting, automatically organises files, provides clear missing document dashboards
- Client Experience: Single, professional touchpoint that enhances perception of the brokerage
While FinanceVault is intrinsically linked to the BrokerEngine ecosystem, other platforms such as Ezidox and BrokerPad offer similar standalone functionality, supporting all major aggregators.
The Convergence of Two Pressures
1. Consumer Expectations: Clients today are accustomed to managing every aspect of their financial lives through slick, secure online portals and mobile apps.
2. Regulatory Environment: The Australian Privacy Act and general compliance obligations mandate the secure handling and storage of sensitive client data.
The Bottom Line: A secure document portal is no longer a “nice-to-have” feature. It has become a fundamental component of modern risk management and a basic requirement for delivering competitive client service. A brokerage still relying on email for sensitive documents is signaling that its processes are outdated, inefficient, and potentially insecure.
Step 5: The Final Mile – Integrated Compliance & Lodgement System
Compliance, particularly under the rigorous Best Interests Duty (BID) regime, is not a final, box-ticking exercise. For Australia’s top brokers, compliance is a robust framework woven into the entire deal workflow from the very first client interaction.
The Industry Standard: ApplyOnline
The undisputed industry standard for loan application submission in Australia is NextGen’s ApplyOnline platform.
ApplyOnline Market Dominance
- Used by 94% of brokers monthly
- High levels of trust and satisfaction
- The ultimate goal of any tech stack is seamless data flow into ApplyOnline
“Compliant by Design” Workflow
This is where the CRM and workflow platform plays its most critical role. The best systems don’t simply manage tasks; they actively enforce and document compliance at every step.
The Final Integration: The Convergence of the Stack
The lodgement stage is where the true power of an integrated tech stack becomes apparent:
- Client data captured via the Document Collection Portal (e.g., FinanceVault)
- Information populates the CRM/Workflow Platform (e.g., BrokerEngine)
- Broker uses the Serviceability Calculator (e.g., Quickli) for assessment
- The CRM’s Compliance Workflow guides through BID steps
- Complete data pushed to ApplyOnline with one click
The Evolution: The modern broker’s tech stack is evolving into more than productivity tools. It’s becoming a comprehensive “system of record” that serves as the brokerage’s primary compliance and risk management shield. Investment in a modern, integrated technology stack is simultaneously an investment in business efficiency, client experience, and essential regulatory protection.
Conclusion: Architecting Your Future-Proof Brokerage
The analysis is unequivocal. These five categories of tools are not isolated products but essential, interconnected layers of a strategic technology ecosystem.
Your Action Plan
- Audit your current operations against these five critical categories
- Identify your biggest bottleneck and address it first
- Focus on integration – ask “How will this tool talk to my other systems?”
- Build your stack strategically – don’t just buy software
The Australian mortgage industry is in rapid evolution. The brokers who will succeed are those who master this technological tide. By strategically architecting an integrated technology stack, you’re not just purchasing efficiency gains. You’re building the capacity to scale, creating robust compliance frameworks, and delivering the superior client experience that will define tomorrow’s market leaders.
Start Building Your Tech Stack TodayDisclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial or professional advice. The tools and platforms mentioned are examples based on market research and do not constitute endorsements. Individual results may vary. Always conduct your own due diligence before implementing any technology solutions in your brokerage.
