Effi partners WE Wumbo in broker-resident app

In a move to help match building residents looking for a better home loan deal with mortgage brokers, mortgage broking platform Effi has announced a partnership with WE Wumbo — a smart lifestyle building and residents management platform — today (16 September).

The partnership comes after Effi announced similar partnerships with comparison websites RateCity and Finty last year and property platform, AD Group, last month.

The WE Wumbo app aims to enable mortgage brokers to assist residents own their home sooner, and/or looking to explore refinance options, the companies explained.

WE Wumbo is a building and resident management communications app currently used by more than 25,000 residents to communicate with building management, daily activities and, “…connect with their neighbours in vertical communities,” Effi stated.

This unique partnership will allow brokers to build a brand profile on the WE Wumbo app and position themselves as a ‘trusted broker’, in front of thousands of Australians, they claimed.

The partnership will also allow borrowers to use the WE Wumbo platform to search and book an appointment with brokers in their calendar instantly through Effi's Calendar Sync using a verified phone number, Effi added.

There is no set-up fee for the WE Wumbo profile, Effi confirmed. A broker profile is simply featured within seconds of purchasing appointments from the Effi platform, Effi explained.

For brokers using the Effi platform, there is no obligation to purchase ongoing leads or spend commitment. Effi's Instant Call feature allows borrowers to speak to their selected broker instantly from the WE Wumbo app.

In terms of pricing, according to its website, the Effi Lite package is billed at $49 per month plus GST, or $40 per month yearly plus GST; the Effi Professional is $120 per month per month plus GST billed monthly, or $100 per month plus GST billed yearly; and the Effi Enterprise costs $120 per month plus GST billed monthly or yearly.

Platform “beneficial” to Aussie brokers

Effi CEO, Mandeep Sodhi, said WE Wumbo has a highly engaged audience who are using the WE Wumbo app regularly to communicate with the building management and the community.

WE Wumbo recognised the benefits of partnering with the broking platform because of how unique Effi's technology is to Australian brokers, Effi explained.

“We take pride in knowing our platform offering is beneficial to Australian brokers, and WE Wumbo recognised this too,” said Sodhi.

“We've built this unique marketplace solution that can be white-labelled by comparison websites and property websites that want to show mortgage brokers without having to go through the hassle of building the whole infrastructure and onboard each individual broker.

“Effi solves this through its marketplace solution that's easily deployable and configurable.

“The partnership will see thousands of residents that use the WE Wumbo App find brokers with ease. In turn, brokers that use the Effi platform will be able to position themselves as a trusted broker.

Opportunity to showcase mortgage brokers

WE Wumbo's founder and CEO, Michael Lee, said partnering with Effi's sophisticated mortgage broker platform was an obvious choice for them.

“We understand the challenges of securing the right home loan and, added to that, rising interest rates, hence [it] is exciting to be working with Effi to assist our residents with such challenges.

“Our users are either tenants looking to own their dream soon or owners who are looking to refinance their property to a lower rate in this rising interest market.

“Given that 70 per cent of all Australian home loans are settled by mortgage brokers, we saw an opportunity for showcasing mortgage brokers rather than direct lenders to ensure our users are provided a better home loan deal, suited to their needs.

“What's so good about the Effi platform is that we can digitally connect our users on WE Wumbo to a growing number of highly rated local mortgage brokers who can deal with complex property buying transactions.

“From that stage in this integrated process, we know our members and visitors will be given the personalised service and expert advice they need to secure a mortgage from a wide range of lenders, including the major banks.”

According to the company, Effi will continue to improve and update its platform, “…striving to address some of the most common issues plaguing the mortgage broking process.”

[Related: https://www.theadviser.com.au/tech/43326-effi-and-ad-group-enter-new-partnership]