Tech company turns home ownership into a game
Justin da Rosa
REP
Canada’s newest broker aims to become the premier digital player in Canada, and its latest product attempts to gamify mortgages by rewarding homeowners for paying down their debt.
“We’re excited to launch our new MogoMortgage, which has simplified the mortgage experience by bringing a new level of transparency to not only the interest rates but also the process of getting a mortgage,” Dave Feller, founder and CEO of Mogo, said. “In addition, unlike any other mortgage experience in Canada, we focus on keeping our members on track through an interactive dashboard that is designed to encourage and reward members for paying down their mortgage, which is perhaps the single biggest thing Canadians can do towards their goal of achieving financial freedom.”
Mogo – which currently boasts 350,000 members for its other financial offerings — promises to reward clients for making milestone payments, as well as offering perks like dinner and celebratory champagne upon funding a mortgage.
While paying down a mortgage is certainly a financial goal for Canadians, many industry players may argue this strategy is simplistic and may encourage many to ignore paying back consumer debt, which costs a lot more in interest than the typical mortgage.
However, Mogo argues that’s not the case.
“We have other products that we are essentially leveraging similar design elements of gamification to get customers focused on good financial behaviour,” Feller told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “So if you have a loan, it’s about getting clients focused. At the end of the day it’s about making sure consumers are smart.”
The technology aims to guide homebuyers through the application, preapproval, and renewal process all the way to the end of the mortgage’s life.
Salaried mortgage specialists are on hand to provide guidance and help clients choose a product. Customers are also given access to monthly credit reports in a bid to help monitor financial health.
“Entering Canada’s $1.4 trillion housing loan market represents a massive business opportunity and is a natural progression for us,” said Greg Feller, president and CFO of Mogo. “This also marks our expansion into fee-based products. As a mortgage broker, we have no capital requirements or credit risk, positioning us to drive high-margin, transaction revenue from our mortgage offering.”
Mogo is currently a licensed broker in BC, Alberta, and Ontario but has plans to roll out across Canada.
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