A new partnerships chief is set to steer Homesafe’s first major tilt into the third‑party channel.
Homesafe Wealth Release has hired experienced partnerships specialist Francis Fusca as its first manager of distribution and partnerships, marking a deliberate shift away from its longstanding, largely direct‑only model and opening the door to broader broker engagement.
In the newly created post, Fusca will design and run Homesafe’s outreach to intermediaries, spanning education initiatives, strategic alliances, and efforts to embed the group’s equity‑release structure in day‑to‑day client conversations.
The company said he joined with more than 13 years’ experience building and overseeing partnership programs in the mortgage and financial services sectors.
Most recently, he served as head of growth markets at Allianz, where he worked closely with NAB, HSBC, and a roster of major broker aggregators.
Homesafe said it settled on Fusca due to his track record in building trusted relationships, lifting business volumes, and crafting partnership strategies.
Responding to mortgage‑laden pre‑retirees
The appointment comes as a growing proportion of Australians approach retirement carrying home loans, placing pressure on household cash flow.
Treasury data cited by the company indicates that close to half of home‑owning Australians aged 55–64 now have housing debt, a trend it said was reshaping how retirement was funded.
Homesafe CEO Dianne Shepherd said the company was seeing rising demand for ways to address these pressures without layering on more borrowing.
Shepherd said the move reflected “growing demand for alternative, non-debt-based solutions for retirees carrying mortgage balances into retirement.”
She also underlined the significance of opening up intermediated channels after almost two decades of focusing largely on direct engagement.
“This is the first time we are actively engaging in the broker and adviser channel, and we are bringing in someone who is exceptionally experienced and well suited to this role,” Shepherd said.
Shepherd added that the group wanted equity release to be considered earlier in retirement planning.
“Brokers are increasingly working with clients who are approaching retirement with outstanding mortgage debt. Expanding into the broker and adviser channel allows equity release to become part of a broader retirement funding conversation, rather than just a last resort option,” she said.
“For many older Australians, the family home is their most valuable asset – yet they often feel trapped by mortgage repayments or cash‑flow pressures.”
Homesafe’s model allows eligible home owners to convert part of their property value into cash through a shared‑equity arrangement rather than a loan and positions its product as an alternative to selling up or turning to reverse mortgages.
Closing the equity‑release knowledge gap
Fusca said a central part of his brief would be clarifying how debt‑free equity‑release structures sit alongside more familiar lending tools.
“I’m excited to join Homesafe at such an important time for the industry,” Fusca said.
He noted that many frontline professionals already recognised the pressures facing clients nearing retirement, yet often lacked a clear framework as to where equity release sat within the suite of options.
“Many brokers already understand the pressures facing pre-retirees. What’s often missing is a clear understanding of where equity release sits relative to traditional lending options. My focus will be on closing that knowledge gap,” he said.
“Homesafe has a unique offering that can genuinely improve outcomes for older Australians, and I’m looking forward to helping more professionals bring this option into their conversations with clients.”
[Related: Housing-rich retirees tap just 1% of equity pool]
