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John Watts

We started Astute North Queensland because I was disappointed with the way banks had done away with ‘Old School’ bank managers that expressed compassion, knowledge and authority.  So we developed a company to fill the gap. I believe the best thing we do is explain the process to the customer in a simple and easy manner; it is this philosophy that has made Astute North Queensland the success it is today. 20 years on and with a number of subsidiary companies, including Equipment Finance, General Insurance, Financial Planning, Accounting and Bookkeeping we have group of individuals that genuinely build relationships with our customers.

Originally born and raised in South-West Queensland, I went to school at Churchie as a boarder in Brisbane. After school I worked in Gove NT, the Kimberly’s WA and Barcaldine Central Queensland, working in the mining and rural industries. I then moved to Toowoomba to work in Real Estate as an Auctioneer and Salesperson, moving back to Cairns in 1996 to continue my real estate career with First National.

If you want to deal with someone the way bank managers were in the old days, contact us.

our-team

0418 716 033

136 Mulgrave Road, Westcourt Cairns, QLD, Australia

0418 716 033

136 Mulgrave Road, Westcourt Cairns, QLD, Australia

What Our Client Have To Say

Morene Rumble helped my partner and I get our finances in order with a personal loan to start saving for a house. I would highly recommend Morene to everyone, she’s very easy to talk to, friendly and makes you feel very comfortable with any situation.

Coryn Drane, Bentley Park

First, Tania: Quite simply, a complete, caring professional. I am not sure where on the spectrum the amount of work she did to get us into our current home falls in her professional career (mind-blowingly easy, somewhat challenging, borderline impossible…), but to us it literally meant the world. The reason we came back to her (and Astute) is because of the level of care and attention she gave us–we don’t feel like a number, an account, a bottom line, or a percentage point. I would recommend her (and go back to her for advice) again and again and again; when we found ourselves in the position to invest and/or buy again, our first thought was we needed to talk to Tania before doing literally anything else.

Building on that, Astute: Again, I would (and do) recommend them to anyone when talk of buying a home or investing comes up. Long story short, I work for a guy named Scotty Garden, and there is very little under the Earth’s sun I would not do for him; ergo I take his advice on anything as gospel. When I causally mentioned a few years back that Michelle and I were thinking of buying a house, he enthusiastically recommended we talk to John Watts at Cairns Home Loans and we did, and John gave us solid, practical advice: Save a bit more and come back to us. And we did, because he looked after us as people (again not an account). He could have talked us into buying something we couldn’t afford, or buying something we didn’t really want, or (as one local branch of an unnamed John Symond-run group told us) we were grumpily told it was “unrealistic” to think of buying a home in our position. Working in tourism/hospitality, I appreciate the personal attention, as well as helping a local business continue doing what it does well.

Sorry to gush, but Michelle and I really do hold you and your whole team in the highest regard. Thank you again, and I will [not] try to stay out of trouble.

Russell & Michelle, Cairns

Gus was incredibly helpful and went above and beyond his job requirements. My partner and I were blown away with the high level of customer service and extra assistance he gave us throughout the process making the purchase of our first home a lot less stressful. Gus was prompt, professional yet down to earth and always contactable. Dan and I have already recommended his services to friends and can’t speak highly enough of Gus.

Rosanna and Dan, Cairns

After having issues with another broker and losing a settlement, we were recommended by solicitor. After speaking with Billie she was honest and open about my options. The entire process was dealt with promptly and efficiently with minimal to no stress.

I found the whole experience easy & everyone there were so lovely n friendly & also available any time to answer any questions we had.

Alison, Trinity Beach

Simon is fantastic! He explains and explains again if you don’t understand. He has helped us on a couple of occasions now and seriously, I wouldn’t go anywhere else or to anyone else.

Kaz, Cooya Beach

We greatly appreciate your efficiency and persistence in helping us purchase our property.

It was a long awaited dream for us to give our kids and ourselves the space and serenity we’ve found. Thank you so much for playing an integral part of that dream coming to fruition.

Leon & Jaunita, Kuranda, QLD

My husband and I went to Astute today, firstly met with Shae at the front reception and had a chat with her. It was lovely to chat with such a friendly happy lady who made us feel welcome.

We went upstairs and met with John Watts for some financial advice. We have known John Watts for over 10 years now, and truly admire his honesty and ‘no beating around the bush business eiquette’. We would highly recommend anyone requiring financial advice and/or a financial bank loan to not look any further than that of the ASTUTE team. 🙂 Thanks Astute….

Kymmie Corbell, Cairns