02/08/2026
Mortgage is a funny word, silent T but the actual origin is French which means death pledge. Sounds like quite the commitment (and it is).
When you purchase a home in New Zealand, we often talk about the Kiwi dream and selling you all the pro's of owning your own piece of of NZ. However it can be a 30 year commitment which "dies" when you finish paying the loan, or it dies for you if you fail to pay and lose the home.
In the UK, all mortgage brokerages must have this disclosure on their website: "YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE"
Sounds a bit depressing and a bit of a wet blanket even before you engage in the process right? But it is definitely a big commitment and there are often hidden costs such as rates, insurance (life and house), potential loss of income, relationship breakups and health issues that we don't often foresee when we have those rose coloured glasses on.
At Zeal, we like to sober people up right at the start about the cost, the risk of interest rates/repayments going up and the costs to expect along the way including moving their KiwiSaver into a Cash fund. We wrap our first home buyers in 'cottonwool' around professionals that know their lane and will guide them professionally while also remaining human and understanding it can be such an emotional rollercoaster.
I see our role as a mortgage broker, similar to the role of a builder who brings all the tradies together around a project. We are ultimately responsible and where the buck stops. The mortgage broker is often just getting the finance but we have to make our clients aware of many other factors that they may not have even considered. At the end of the day, if it all goes wrong, its human nature to look for someone to blame and we carry that burden.
We want more Kiwis in their own homes, less people renting but what my commitment is when you or your clients come through Zeal, we will make sure every client is aware of the risks and we will help them understand in layman terms so they can make an informed decision not just email out a disclosure statement to tick a box.
Its a big life commitment and it can be a very daunting one but remember, in life to get the reward you must take some calculated risk and we are here to point you in the right direction.
We are super busy at the moment with enquiries from first home buyers. A lot of them don't really have a clue what the process is, I am very protective of my clients and we go through the journey with them and take ownership of that responsibility.
Reach out if you need some guidance, we would love to help you and your clients achieve the dream so it doesn't turn into a nightmare.
(This post was not made or edited by AI) Chur
