Donna Marks is a mortgage adviser based in Lower Hutt, offering expert mortgage advice and personalised support across the whole Wellington region, including Wellington City, Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt, Porirua and Whitby. With more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry — mainly in residential lending and management with a major NZ bank, plus three years with a NZ-owned Trustee Company handling estate planning such as Wills, EPOAs, Estates and Family Trusts — Donna works with clients at every stage of the home ownership journey.
Donna covers first home buyers, upgraders, refinancing, new builds, and rental/investment property lending, drawing on her own experience owning several investment properties to give clients a practical understanding of the risks involved. She holds a Diploma in Business Studies with an endorsement in Financial Planning, a Certificate IV in Financial Services (Personal Trust Administration), an NZQA Level 5 Certificate in Financial Services, and the Residential Property Lending Strand.
In 2020, her first year as an independent Mortgage Adviser, Donna was awarded New Member of the Year in the Astute Recognising Excellence Awards. She has settled more than $60 million in loans over the last 5 years, worked with over 2,000 satisfied clients across more than 20 years in the Wellington property business, and holds a 5-star Google rating from many of her clients. In most cases, her advice and support come at no charge to the client, as the bank pays mortgage advisers when the home loan is settled.
Buying, building, upgrading, or refinancing a home is rarely simple, and in a market as competitive as Wellington's, having the right adviser on your side matters. Donna Marks, based in Lower Hutt, has spent more than 30 years in the financial services industry, and offers expert mortgage advice and personalised support to clients across the whole Wellington region — Wellington City, Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt, Porirua and Whitby.
Donna's career began in residential lending and management with a major New Zealand bank, before she spent three years with a NZ-owned Trustee Company working across estate planning — Wills, Enduring Powers of Attorney, Estates and Family Trusts. That background gives her a big-picture perspective on financial decision-making and asset protection that carries through into how she advises mortgage clients today. She's worked in the Wellington housing market for over two decades, first as an adviser for a major lender and then as an independent mortgage adviser, helping hundreds of clients navigate a market that has changed dramatically over that time.
Donna works with clients at every stage of the property journey: first home buyers taking their first steps into the market, buyers building a new home, investors managing rental properties, homeowners looking to upgrade, and anyone wanting to refinance or restructure an existing mortgage for a better deal. She has personally owned several investment properties herself, which she says gives her a practical, firsthand understanding of the risks involved in property investment — insight she brings directly into her advice for rental and investment clients.
Donna holds a Diploma in Business Studies with an endorsement in Financial Planning, a Certificate IV in Financial Services (Personal Trust Administration), an NZQA Level 5 Certificate in Financial Services enabling her to give regulated financial advice, and the Residential Property Lending Strand. In 2020, her first year as an independent Mortgage Adviser, she was awarded New Member of the Year in the Astute Recognising Excellence Awards. Over the past five years, she has settled more than $60 million in loans, and holds a 5-star Google rating built up across more than 2,000 satisfied clients over her more than 20 years in the Wellington property business.
Donna's testimonials describe a consistent pattern: clients who felt lost or overwhelmed by the mortgage process finding clarity and confidence with her help. First-home buyers describe her explaining "everything simply and calmly," handling communication with the bank and connecting them with a lawyer. Investors and upgraders describe her securing finance "when all other lenders couldn't see our potential," and clients who'd been turned down by their own bank found a new mortgage through her within days. Several reviews specifically mention her responsiveness, patience, and ability to make a stressful process manageable — with more than one client calling her a trusted long-term adviser they'd return to for future lending needs.
One detail Donna is upfront about: in most cases, her advice and support come at no charge to the client. Mortgage advisers are typically paid by the bank once a home loan is settled, meaning clients get expert, independent guidance through one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives without an upfront fee.
Outside of work, Donna is married with two children and four grandchildren, and enjoys spending time with family and friends, gardening, knitting and crocheting. She can be reached by phone at 027 330 6623 or by email at [email protected], with her office at 516 High Street, Lower Hutt, and is active on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.