Specialist property lender Thinktank has surpassed $2 billion in loan settlements thanks to the continued demand for commercial property finance among investors.
The company stated SMSFs had played a part in the sustained demand for commercial property finance that had led to Thinktank’s growth during the year.
Thinktank chief executive Jonathan Street said: “As 2019 draws to a close, it’s exciting to record such a milestone, particularly when you consider that the last $1 billion has been produced in the past 22 months. Based on current projections, the $3 billion mark is expected to be reached in early 2021.
“The achievement has come on the back of six successive years where loan growth has exceeded 30 per cent, which we believe is a product of continuing to maintain our core focus on support for the finance broker channel and working collaboratively with our relationship business partners in the aggregation space.
“It is also very encouraging to see the strong demand that has emerged for our range of self-employed residential loan products we introduced earlier this year that neatly complement our commercial product range that is sought, in the main, by business owners and SMEs who turn to brokers for financial assistance.”
Based in Sydney, with offices in Brisbane and Melbourne, the property lender employed an additional 31 staff in 2019 and completed its fifth securitisation for $350 million in November, taking its total bond issuance to date to $1.4 billion.
The company said it would introduce advanced online loan broker lodgement capabilities early next year and would also implement comprehensive credit reporting in order to be equal to the major banks.
In August, Street predicted commercial property would continue to provide long-term benefits and remain a good option for SMSF investors, despite improved prospects within the residential property market.
