It has been said that a recession is the best time to start a business: if a new venture can survive the strong downward draft of an economic slump, the thinking goes, it can survive anything.

Although that may not be an ironclad rule, it may be working in favour of independent mortgage broker Paul Habert. A year ago, Habert left his job as vice president of marketing at Dundee Wealth Management Inc. to start his own venture as an independent mortgage consultant with Dundee Mortgage Services, a division of DundeeWealth Inc.

Reflecting on his timing, Habert notes ruefully that there were indeed “clouds on the horizon, but they didn’t look like thunderstorms.”

Nevertheless, Habert says, not only is he staying afloat in these troubled times, he is prospering. Since the beginning of the year, Habert estimates, he has received referrals from about 50 advisors, interacted with about 100 clients and placed about $10 million in mostly residential mortgages. Indeed, Habert is now so busy that his wife Carrie is currently studying to become an independent mortgage broker so she can join Habert in his expanding business.

Being adept at connecting with others is a prerequisite for those in the business of giving financial advice, and Habert, 38, broadcasts a youthful, relaxed demeanour. He hardly looks old enough to be the father of two children, 10 and eight. Also a musician, he sings and plays guitar in a band, Second Pass.

But it’s having spent many years on the inside of the business that he says is helping the most when it comes to driving what has, so far, been a successful foray into professional independence. After starting out in 1992 with a series of small mutual fund companies, he moved to Dundee Mutual Funds in 1996, subsequently working in a variety of positions through a period of rapid expansion and change.

By last year, Habert had decided that he “needed a new challenge” and found that he wanted to know if he could stand on his own two feet. “I wanted to leverage my relationships and my skill sets,” he says, “and be my own boss and benefit directly from my efforts.”

Habert has developed a remarkable number of connections throughout many years in the financial services industry. He has relationships with, he says, “Literally hundreds of advisors across the country, both at Dundee and at other mutual fund dealers and brokerages.”

Howard Goodman, a top advi-sor at Dundee and a member of the family that founded and still controls that company, also helped smooth the way for Habert’s transition. Goodman offered the use of office space in the company’s North York offices. The arrangement includes close ties to Goodman’s extensive network of advisors.

“It was an easy move to make,” Habert says, because Goodman can continue to benefit from Habert’s services being in-house, while Habert retains important links to Dundee.

Habert says his academic career — a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Western Ontario — may not be the usual path to his present career. But he has financial services credentials, too, including the Canadian securities course from the CSI Global Education Inc. More recently, he has become licensed through the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals; he holds the accredited mortgage professional designation.

So, what’s the attraction? Habert says he’s always been interested in finance and the markets, and the decision to enter the field seemed natural. “The industry is never dull,” he says. “It can consume people 24 hours a day, and that’s exciting to me. You feel like you are in the know and news of the world matters to your job.”

In fact, the unanticipated events of the past year have brought opportunities, Habert says: “Mortgage rates are extremely low, historically speaking.”

That creates new windows for people who want to refinance their debts, while first-time buyers are benefiting from both low rates and softening real estate prices. “There’s actually been a lot of activity,” he says. “I have been extremely fortunate and very busy; it’s been a fantastic way to learn.”

Habert gets two or three calls a week from homeowners wondering if it’s beneficial to refinance their existing mortgages. Others are looking to pay lower rates overall by consolidating existing debts, such as credit card balances, together with their mortgages.

@page_break@Habert also works with clients who are dealing with regular maturities: “I’ll pound the pavement, find them the best rate and do all the processing. There’s value to that.”

Most of Habert’s compensation comes from the lenders, who pay a finder’s fee. That rate is typically about 80 basis points, which he shares with Dundee.

Like other non-bank financial institutions, Dundee has benefited from the growth in the non-bank mortgage industry over the past decade and is now one of the largest mortgage brokers in Canada. That growth, which has been particularly strong over the past couple of years, is tied to a changing attitude among both consumers and commercial borrowers.

“Canadians have had it with the fees and service levels at many banks and are looking for solid alternatives,” Habert says.

The banks’ reaction to the new competition has been mixed: Bank of Nova Scotia, Toronto-Dominion Bank, National Bank of Canada and Laurentian Bank of Canada, for instance, have opened their mortgage departments to the mortgage broker channel.

But others, including Bank of Montreal and Royal Bank of Canada, do not use mortgage brokers for residential mortgages, while Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce uses a bank division, FirstLine Mortgages, to deal with mortgage brokers.

Times have changed, particularly in situations in which appraisals are involved. Until recently, appraisals would typically at least match the price bid for a property. But now many appraisals fall below the purchase price. An insurer, such as the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp., may then re-fuse to insure the mortgage, effectively scuttling the deal.

In general, Habert says, many clients are paying more attention and showing more willingness to sweat the details of their personal finances — making it clear that their savings are more precious to them. Says Habert: “There are a lot more people who are interested in saving a couple of thousand dollars here and there.” IE