Our Commitment to You
As Australia’s premier Equity Release Professionals, Fortus members commit to the highest standards when assisting Seniors navigate their way to a fully informed decision about whether, and if so, how, to go about releasing home equity
- Our standards relate to:
- our education and training;
- how we make recommendations; and
- how we offer our services.
To ensure that Fortus Members are qualified to discuss Equity Release solutions, each Member will ensure that its representatives will:
- Hold RMC (Reverse Mortgage Consultant) accreditation from SEQUAL;
- Maintain Membership of a relevant professional body (e.g. MFAA, FPA or the CPA);
- Hold specific product accreditation for each product recommended to the client;
- Hold a Certificate IV financial intermediary qualification (or equivalent); and
- Maintain membership of an ASIC approved external dispute resolution scheme.
To ensure that there is a consistent and transparent approach to the recommendation of Equity Release solutions, each Member will ensure that its representatives will:
- Follow the "MFAA’s Equity Release Code of Proper Process" or the CPA "Guidance Notes for advising on Reverse Mortgages", when recommending an Equity Release solution;
- Only recommend Reverse Mortgages offered by SEQUAL members;
- Identify and recommend those available Reverse Mortgages which have the fewest default conditions attaching to the No Negative Equity Guarantee, and specifically any lender whose No Negative Equity Guarantee survives any loan default by the client;
- Undertake a Record of Enquiry (Needs Analysis) based on the client’s circumstances;
- Provide numerical and graphical illustrations of the proposed Equity Release transaction; and
- Only recommend loan products that are protected by the Uniform Consumer Credit Code.
To assist in recommending appropriate Equity Release solutions, each Member will ensure that its representatives will:
- Offer clients access to all forms of Equity Release products as they become available, including Reverse Mortgages, Shared Appreciation Mortgages and Home Reversion Schemes;
- Ensure clients are not required to pay any fees & charges to a lender until the transaction settles, with no obligation to pay any fees should the transaction not proceed; and
- Offer their professional services to the client without seeking payment from both the client and lender.