“What Comes After the Finish Line?” — Why Most Mortgage Brokers Regret Selling Their Business

By Ash Playsted
General Manager, Broker Performance – RECLUDO Group

It’s the morning after.

The ink is dry. The funds are cleared. The keys to your mortgage brokerage have been handed over, and for the first time in years—maybe decades—you have nowhere to be.

So why does it feel so hollow?

This question came up in a recent chat with my old mate Dean, a broker who built a stellar $3.3 million broking firm from scratch. He did everything “right”: hired well, scaled smart, sold strong. He should’ve been living the dream.

Instead, Dean found himself staring at the wall, wondering: What now?

It’s a conversation that hits close to home. Because Dean isn’t alone.

According to research, 96% of business owners regret selling their company. Not because they didn’t get paid. Not because the buyer did a bad job. But because they had no plan for what comes next.

Let me say this plainly: Succession planning is not just about who takes over your business. It’s about what your life looks like after you step away.

And in the Australian mortgage broking industry—where owners are still the rainmakers, the leaders, and the glue—this gap in planning is a silent crisis.

It doesn’t have to be.

The Hidden Side of Exit Planning

Most mortgage brokers I speak to are excellent at what they do. They know how to help clients navigate the lending landscape, build strong teams, and generate consistent cash flow.

But when it comes to preparing for life after broking?

Crickets.

This isn’t a criticism. It’s just not something we’re taught. Most brokers enter the industry as practitioners, not entrepreneurs. We’re focused on clients, not capital events. We build by instinct, not exit strategy.

So when the time finally comes to step back, we’re left trying to answer the most confronting question of all:

Who am I without my business?

Significance vs. Success: What We Get Wrong

For many brokers, success is measured in numbers:

• Loan volumes
  

• Trail books
  

• EBITDA multiples (sometimes)
  

• Sale price
  

But none of that defines who we are when the lights go out.

In my own journey—having built, exited, and re-entered this industry more than once—I’ve learned that success gets you to the finish line, but significance is what makes the journey worthwhile.

Significance is about purpose.

It’s about creating something that outlasts you.

It’s about aligning your business goals with your personal vision—not just your valuation.

And that starts long before you sell.

The Cost of Not Planning for Life After Business

Let’s talk about what happens when we skip the “after” planning:

1. Loss of Identity: You’ve been “the broker” for 10, 20, 30 years. What’s your new title? What’s your role in the world without the business?
   

2. Lack of Routine: No team to lead, no pipeline to manage, no 8am Zooms. The freedom you craved can quickly feel like a void.
   

3. Emotional Disconnection: It’s hard to explain to others why you feel empty after a “successful exit.” And that isolation? It’s real.
   

4. Financial Missteps: Without a post-sale wealth plan, even large payouts can feel like a moving target—especially if lifestyle creep sets in.
   

In short: exiting without a life strategy is like jumping off a moving train without knowing where you’ll land.

Why This Matters More Than Ever in Mortgage Broking

Here in Australia, the mortgage industry is in a period of consolidation.

Aggregator groups, private equity investors, and cashed-up competitors are circling high-performing brokerages. Succession conversations are ramping up. But most brokers still don’t have a structured plan.

They’re reactive, not proactive.

And here's the rub: The market doesn’t care if you’re not ready.

If you want to retain control of your legacy, your equity, and your future, the time to act is now.

Three Actions to Start Building a Life-After-Business Plan

Let’s ground this in action. Here are three steps you can take today to start planning beyond the brokerage:

1. Clarify Your Personal Vision

Ask yourself: If I sold the business tomorrow, how would I spend my next 10 years?

Write it down. Be specific. Whether it’s mentoring young brokers, restoring vintage cars, or moving to the coast—it doesn’t matter. What matters is why that vision matters to you.

When you know what you want next, you can shape your exit to fund and support that vision.

2. Build a “Life After Business” Portfolio

Just like you diversify your financial investments, you should diversify your sense of purpose.

Start cultivating interests, hobbies, or causes outside the business. Serve on a board. Start a podcast. Learn to surf. These aren’t distractions—they’re part of your personal runway to a smooth landing post-exit.

3. Bring in a Strategic Succession Advisor

Don’t go it alone.

At Recludo, we partner with mortgage business owners well before the exit horizon. We help them integrate personal ambition with business succession so they don’t just “get out” of the business—they graduate into their next chapter with clarity and confidence.

Whether you're 2 years or 10 years from exit, it’s never too early to start designing a roadmap that includes your whole life—not just your business plan.

What I’ve Learned (the Hard Way)

Every time I’ve stepped away from a business, I’ve faced the same question Dean did:

What do I do now?

And each time, the answer got clearer—not because I had all the answers, but because I started asking the right questions sooner.

Questions like:

• What legacy do I want to leave?
  

• Who do I want to become when the business card changes?
  

• How do I want to feel the day after I sell?
  

These questions shape everything. Your exit. Your succession strategy. Your reinvention.

And in my experience, the brokers who ask them early are the ones who exit on purpose, not by default.

Final Thought: Don’t Just Sell. Evolve.

The truth is, you don’t need to exit to start planning your legacy.

You can build it into your business right now.

Create an internal succession path. Train your second-in-command. Define the life you want, then reverse-engineer the business to support it.

Because when you build with significance in mind—not just success—you don’t just sell a business.

You graduate from it.

And that, my friend, is a game worth playing.

Ready to talk succession and life after broking?
Let’s have a conversation about your next chapter—before the final chapter writes itself.

🔗 [Book a confidential strategy session with Ash]