This article answers some of the most common questions we get from BrokerEngine clients who participated in the AOL submission pilot.
A different article shows how to complete and submit a lodgement to AOL.
Contents
General features & processes
Do I need the Credit Guide and Credit Proposal signed/acknowledged before opening AOL?
To open AOL, the Credit Guide and Privacy Consent must be acknowledged, uploaded, or marked as not required. The Credit Proposal needs to be generated, but does not need to be acknowledged or signed to access AOL. However, you must get the Credit Proposal acknowledged or signed before lodging to the lender.
What happens to commission payments?
When you submit to AOL through BrokerEngine, a complete Application record is created in FLEX. This means all your FLEX features, including commission payments, will continue to function just as they do today.
I am used to tracking metrics in FLEX. Can I still do this?
Yes, submitting to AOL through BrokerEngine generates a full Application record in FLEX, so you can continue tracking metrics just as you do now.
How do I use Smart Marketing?
Once you create an AOL record in BrokerEngine, an application is automatically generated in FLEX, and your contacts are added to Smart Marketing.
As a result of this, you may end up with duplicate contacts. This is being addressed, and we hope to have a fix out in mid-2025.
I want to upload supporting documents to FLEX for audit purposes. Is that possible?
Yes, once you submit an application to AOL, a record is created in FLEX. You can upload the documents there if you wish, as per your normal process.
Deal management
What if I change the lender or product after submitting a deal to AOL?
You'll need to clone the deal in BrokerEngine, import the product selection, and complete the Credit Proposal page. Essentially, clone, update, and resubmit. You can import the product selection from the old deal, and all other data (e.g. fact find, funding position, and compliance notes) will carry over.
If you change the product after submitting, you'll need to follow the clone, update, and resubmit process, as well. This is a bug, and it will be fixed soon.
Importing the product scenario is easy. Click here to learn how.
Can I copy data from the legacy funding position to the Lodgement Funding section?
No, you can't. You should continue using the legacy funding position for quick calculations, reports, post-settlement activities, and other work. The new Lodgement Funding section is for Direct Lodgement only, and only requires minimal detail to be input.
Does Lodgement Funding better manage more scenarios like multiple properties?
Yes, Lodgement Funding covers almost all 42 identified scenarios, including multiple securities, land and build loans, internal refinances, and favourable purchases.
I have data filled out in one deal and want to reuse it. How do I do that?
Applicant details (e.g. address history, employment history, etc.) are stored in the contact record, but fact find data like assets, liabilities, and living expenses are deal-specific. To reuse all the data, you should clone the deal. When creating a new deal with the same applicants, only the contact-level details carry over.
How do product fees work?
The product fees shown in the Credit Proposal are pulled from the Product Scenario feature in BrokerEngine. If you need to adjust the fees, such as setting an application fee to zero or removing a duplicate, make the changes in the product selection.
What if the interest rate changed after I created a product scenario?
You should (for now) redo the Product Selection from scratch. Remove the products from the Scenario builder, re-add them, and then auto-build.
Will the data I update in AOL flow back into BrokerEngine?
No, there is no backwards sync from AOL back to BrokerEngine.
Special features & scenarios
How do Guarantor Loans work?
You can add guarantors to a deal as usual. Generate the Credit Proposal and submission. Security Guarantors do not need to sign or acknowledge the Credit Proposal.
Also, Guarantors do not need to enter living expenses, so you will not see a Household > Living Expenses field for Guarantors in BrokerEngine. If you have a Servicing Guarantor, you must add them as a co-applicant (for now).
How do I include self-employed add backs in income calculations?
For now, include all add backs in the Profit Before Tax field or Director's Wage field. Currently, we do not support negative add backs or negative values (e.g. where the company reports a loss). The workaround is to remove this income manually from other income the client is making until we fix this.
System & data management
Can I use the data in the Legacy Classic fact find?
Unfortunately, no. You need to copy the data to the new fact find for Direct Lodgement to work. Alternatively, you can sync the Classic fact find to FLEX as you do now, and lodge the application in FLEX.
Will the Product Selection and the Lodgement Funding be better integrated?
Yes, work is underway to integrate the Product and Lodgement Funding features more tightly.
How do I compare servicing across multiple products in BrokerEngine?
Currently, BrokerEngine calculates affordability for the selected products only. You should continue using your usual methods for calculating borrowing capacity across multiple lenders and upload the lender's calculator in the Credit Proposal > Affordability section.
Why is lender-calculated affordability showing significantly lower for commitments?
This is often due to missing expiry dates or loan maturity dates for existing commitments that are not being refinanced. Be sure to enter an expiry date set in the future for any ongoing obligations. This ensures the lender's affordability calculation reflects these commitments accurately.
Why does the lender calculator show positive servicing, but BrokerEngine shows a negative surplus?
Our calculator isn't exact and may sometimes show that a deal doesn't service, even when the lender's calculator confirms that it does, especially in cases involving negative gearing. When this happens, simply upload a copy of the lender's calculator to verify positive servicing and add a comment explaining the reason for proceeding.
Technical questions & future features
How do Back Channel Messages (BCMs) work?
If you currently receive email updates from FLEX when a BCM is sent, you will continue to do so. Soon, these BCMs will be available inside BrokerEngine, and eventually, they will allow for automated stage moves within the system and update to the lender reference number.
Will data mapping to AOL be improved?
Yes, this is an ongoing effort. Expect continuous improvements to ensure better data mapping between BrokerEngine and AOL.
Will documents automatically be sent from FinanceVault to AOL?
No, but this is our next high-priority feature. Stay tuned. This feature is going to be a game-changer!
Where are the fees coming from in the funding position?
The fees in the funding position section of the Credit Proposal are a combination of the fees in the Lodgment Funding and Products tabs. If there is a discrepancy, it's likely due to a fee attached to a product, so review the fees on the Products page for accuracy.
Click here to watch a short video about product fees.