Hi Tom,

Mortgage broking can be a very fulfilling and rewarding career, especially if you enjoy helping other people.  The difficulty in the beginning, like any new business, is establishing your client base. 

In regards to you wanting to leave your current job, it comes down to how unhappy you are in your current position.   If you are happy enough to continue in your existing job, I would recommend to obtain your Diploma in Finance (Mortgage Broking Management) part time while still working.  The training organisation I completed my Diploma with was AAMC Training.  If you need to leave your job, you need to have a partner that is prepared to support you, or enough savings to live off for at least 12 to 18 months.

Once you have completed your Diploma, you will then need to find an existing broker who will act as your mentor, and will also allow you to operate as a credit representative underneath their Australian Credit Licence.    Depending on your agreement, some will ask for a flat monthly fee, and others will ask for a percentage of your commission.  When I started, I opted for the second option, as you are not paying out money until you start writing loans, and your mentor will not get paid unless you write loans.   It is important that you ensure any ongoing trail commission remains on your own individual loan book, as in the future this additional income is valuable if you decide to sell your business in future or in retirement.

The feedback I get from many brokers that have entered the industry in the last 5 years (myself included) is that it takes a good 2 years of hard work, and building relationships with financial planners, accountants, real estate agents and property developers before you start seeing the financial rewards, so it is definitely a marathon and not a sprint.  By all accounts, once you have an established client base, and you enjoy what you do, the business will continue to grow from referrals of your existing clients.

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Good luck.