New non-bank lender launches

The loans are available to a maximum loan-to-value ratio of 75 per cent, and establishment fees start from 1.5 per cent.

The lender is backed by non-bank lender Assetline Capital, which provides commercial lending for bridging, construction, and longer-term finance for residential and commercial property-based transactions.  

Clinch said it had built its own proprietary credit-decisioning engine to provide speedy approvals for those needing finance when moving properties. It said its “fully digital, tech-enabled bridging finance solution” could provide approval in under six hours.

According to the lender, it was designed to help the estimated 600,000 households that are planning to move this year by ensuring that they “don’t miss out on their dream home”. 

Clinch founder & chief executive Wayne Miller noted that he himself was in such a position when he bought a bigger house for his growing family but hadn’t sold his existing home yet.  

“Everyone knows that buying and selling a home is stressful. Clinch’s aim is to make it easy for people to obtain short-term finance, to take the time pressure out of buying and selling decisions,” Mr Miller said. 

“Chances are your home is the biggest investment you will ever make. You do not want to be forced to make snap decisions that, at best, means having to compromise and, at worst, live with buyer’s regret or seller’s remorse.

“Getting the timing right when buying and selling a home in the same market is difficult at the best of times. Most people will know families who have had to find a short-term rental because they’ve sold and haven’t been able to secure another property in time, and then end up moving twice.  

“In this current market, people are going to try to avoid that at all costs as short-term rentals are expensive, hard to come by, and the outlook is just so uncertain.”

The CEO said Clinch’s product could also be attractive for downsizers, who want the security of buying their next property before selling their family home. 

“We provide comfort and clarity to everyday Australians who want to be able to release equity in their home before selling. Often downsizers want to release equity early in order to help their children out with a deposit in an otherwise inaccessible property market,” Mr Miller said.

Brokers with an Australian Credit Licence (ACL) will be able to access the product once directly accredited. 

Mr Miller added that, there could likely be a spike in demand for short-term finance from broker clients who “want to be able to snap up a bargain but haven’t listed or sold their property yet”.  

“The major banks are not interested in offering bridging finance to anyone other than their existing customers, and their approval processes are slow and clunky,” Mr Miller concluded. 

“What our existing broker network is telling us is there is a real need for a lender like Clinch which offers exceptional customer service and a competitively priced product.”

Assetline’s national head of sales & distribution Royden D'Vaz, commented: “Having been in the industry for many years and — with a deep understanding of the type of products that brokers and customers need — Assetline is proud to support Clinch with our distribution network.

“Clinch is 100 per cent the solution that property buyers have long needed to take the stress out of buying and selling.” 

[Related: New national head of sales recruited at Assetline Capital]