Commercial lending to lift: La Trobe

According to a company statement, the future of commercial lending is looking much brighter for brokers as several non-banks look to ramp up their presence in this space.

“The non-banks have a service-first mentality which has resulted in a more streamlined efficient process for brokers to use, often mirroring the process for their own residential loan products,” La Trobe Financial’s joint head of asset origination Stephen Lawrence said.

Mr Lawrence said the lender has strived to make its products more “broker friendly” in recent months.

“Putting ourselves in the borrower’s shoes has helped us craft our commercial loan products into market leading solutions, catering for borrowers seeking commercial finance without all the unnecessary fuss and paperwork. We are able to implement our standard residential loan assessment criteria, policies and procedures to our commercial loans, so that any broker familiar with our residential products can easily begin writing commercial business with us,” he said.

“Our products are suited to brokers who have never written a commercial loan before, and are a great way for brokers to increase their revenue stream.”

By adding commercial lending to your repertoire, brokers are able to service more customers by volume, and unlock a new – potentially lucrative, demographic of client as commercial property is often part of a sophisticated investor’s property portfolio, according to Mr Lawrence.