St George is the latest bank to revamp mortgage broker commissions, by reducing upfront commissions to between 50 and 70 basis points and trailing commissions to between 15 and 25 basis points, and requiring brokers to cross-sell other St George products and meet certain criteria in order to be paid full commissions.
"We are introducing these changes after careful consultation with our broker partners and, rather than just cutting commissions, we intend this to be a clear signal that we will continue to support the mortgage broking industry,'' St George acting group executive retail business George Beatty said.
It has been suggested that rewarding brokers for doing more business with the bank will create a conflict of interest for the mortgage broker when they're choosing which bank to place a customer's loan.