Credit Guide

Version 3 (updated 31 May 2023)

This Credit Guide contains important information about us, the services we provide and the activities of the credit representative operating under our credit licence. It also contains: 

• information about fees and charges that may be payable by you to us;
• commissions that we may receive when we are acting as a credit representative; 
• commissions that we may pay to third parties for the introduction of business; and 
• information about what you should do if you have a complaint or dispute regarding our services and activities. 

We are required to provide this document to you as soon as practicable after it becomes apparent that we are likely to provide credit assistance to you. We provide “credit assistance” when we: 

1. Suggest or assist you in applying for:
   1. a particular loan with a particular lender; or 
   2. an increase to an existing loan with a particular lender; or 
2. Recommend that you remain in an existing loan contract. 

About us

ProSolution Group Pty Ltd (trading as ProSolution Private Clients) ABN 54 096 725 370 is licensed under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009. Our Australian Credit License number is 238449 and we have authorised Jodi McKeown as a credit representative (credit representative number 365742). Our contact details are available here. 

Best interest duty

Our broker’s priority is to you, their customer. We require our brokers place your finance needs above those of anyone else. Our brokers are required to be transparent about products, your options, applicable fees, and charges as well any conflicts of interest. They will communicate in simple to understand language and act with the highest standards of integrity. They are committed to ensuring the product selected will meet your needs, requirements and be in your best interests at the time of assisting you obtaining finance. 

What is a credit representative?

A ‘credit representative’ is a person who has been authorised by ProSolution Group Pty Ltd (licensee) to engage in specified credit activities on behalf of the licensee.

What is credit assistance?

We give you credit assistance when:

• we assist you to apply for a particular loan or lease;
• we suggest you apply for a particular loan or lease (or suggest you apply for an increase to an existing loan); or
• we suggest you remain in your current loan or lease.

The assessment we need to do before giving you credit assistance

Prior to providing credit assistance to you, we must assess whether the particular loan is “unsuitable”. A loan will be “unsuitable” based on the information you provide to us if: 

1. You will be unable to repay the proposed loan or will only be able to repay the proposed loan with substantial hardship; or 
2. The proposed loan does not meet your requirements and objectives. 

We are required to document our findings that the proposed loan is not unsuitable by way of completing a Preliminary Assessment. The Preliminary Assessment will set out your: 

• requirements and objectives; 
• financial and relevant personal situation; and 
• ability to repay the proposed loan. 

We are also required to take reasonable steps to verify information provided by you to us. 

This verification may include: 

• requesting you for copies of documents that demonstrate your financial situation – in some cases we may also need to sight original documents, and 
• contacting third parties to assist in verifying the information that you provide. 

This preliminary Assessment will be provided you prior to submitting an application with a lender in a document called a Statement of Credit Advice.

Getting a copy of our assessment

If we provide you with credit assistance, you can ask us for a copy of our assessment any time up to 7 years after we provide you with a credit assistance quote. To request a copy please contact us. We will provide you with a copy:

• within 7 business days after the day we receive your request – provided you make the request within 2 years of the date of our credit assistance quote; or
• otherwise, within 21 business days after the day we receive your request.

Fees and charges

We may charge a fee for providing credit assistance to you. If applicable, details about these fees payable by you will be set out in a Credit Quote which we will give you prior to submitting your loan application. 

You may have to pay other fees and charges (such as application fees, valuation costs and other applicable fees) to the lender or other parties. You should review the particular loan contract documentation for further details of any such fees and charges. 

How do we get paid?

Our aggregator receives commission from the lenders and then pays us commission in relation to loan contracts (such as home and investment property loans). 

An upfront commission is payable by lenders in relation to settled (drawn-down) loans and is calculated as a percentage of the loan amount. It is usually paid after settlement of the loan. 

Trail commission is payable by lenders in relation to settled (drawn-down) loans. It is calculated monthly on the outstanding loan balance and is paid in arrears. 

The upfront and trail commissions that we are paid by lenders are not payable by you. Details of commission to be received will be included in Statement of Credit Advice document that we will provide you with when credit assistance is provided. 

From time to time, I may also receive a non-commission benefit by way of training, professional development, entertainment, gift, conference attendance, at no extra cost to you. The nature of such arrangements are temporary, and the occurrence and amounts are often not readily ascertainable, however if they are apparent as a result of assisting you with credit assistance, this will be disclosed to you. 

Our service providers

We have approval to utilise lenders and their loan products through the services of our aggregators:

1. Connective Broker Services Pty Ltd ABN 77 161 731 111, Credit Representative 437202 authorised under Australian Credit Licence 389328; and 
2. ProLoan (Aust) Pty Ltd ABN 98 005 189 097, Australian Credit License 390085. 

Aggregator charges us a fixed monthly fee. We have access to a panel of lenders through Connective. Macquarie Bank Limited is a 25% shareholder of Connective. We have access to products including those from Macquarie Bank Limited.  

Commissions paid by our aggregators’ lender panel are transparent and do not influence the broker or consumer choice. 

Disputes or complaints

We are committed to providing you with the best possible service. However, we understand there may be times where you are not satisfied. If this occurs please inform us verbally or in writing with the exact details of your complaint, so we can work towards a prompt and fair resolution. 

If we are unable to reach a satisfactory resolution, you can make a complaint in writing to the owner, Stuart Wemyss (his direct email address can be provided to you). With regards to complaints resolution, we are mindful of the need to ensure that consumers are treated fairly and with respect during the complaints handling process.  Any dissatisfaction with a credit representative operating under the licence will be handled in an efficient, timely and effective manner in accordance with ASIC regulations of Internal Dispute Resolution (IDR). 

We hope that you will be satisfied with how we deal with your complaint. However, if your concerns remain unresolved, or you have not heard from us within 30 days, then you can have your complaint heard by an independent party. The complaint can be lodged with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA): 

Phone: 1800 931 678 (free call)
Email: info@afca.org.au
Website: www.afca.org.au
Mail: Australian Financial Complaints Authority, GPO Box 3, Melbourne VIC 3001 

Time limits may apply to complain to AFCA and so you should act promptly or otherwise consult the AFCA website to find out if or when the time limit relevant to your circumstances expires. 

Things you should know

Our brokers don’t provide legal or financial planning advice. It is important you understand your legal obligations under the loan, and the financial consequences. If you have any doubts, you should obtain independent legal and financial planning advice before you enter any loan contract. 

Our lender panel & data

We are authorised to engage in credit activities and therefore provide assistance to obtain loans for you from a panel of lenders. The following are the lenders through which we (Jodi McKeown) have conducted the most business over the last 12 months (share of business is included in brackets):

• Westpac (72%)
• CBA (12%)
• ANZ (9%)
• nab (2%)
• Bluebay Home Loans (2%)
• Connective (2%)

Over the past year we have used 8 lenders. We are able to provide a list of lenders that Jodi or ProSolution is accredited with.

Entertainment and hospitality register 

We hold and maintain an entertainment and hospitality register. A copy can be provided on request.

Preferential service offerings and programs 

I have access to tiered servicing programs through Westpac, CBA and ANZ. These programs give you, as my customer access to preferential services. Access to these programs is not based solely on the volume of loans submitted and does not entitle me to any additional commission outside of what I will disclose to you if a loan is submitted to one of these lenders. It should be noted that these preferential services do not provide customer discounts. 

Further information

For more information about this Credit Guide or anything else regarding our services, just contact us at any time. 

You can find our (1) dispute resolution policy, (2) CPD policy, and (2) privacy policy here.