Heartland’s reverse-mortgage momentum strengthened over the financial year, as its intermediary footprint widened.
Heartland Bank Australia, the Australian banking arm of NZX/ASX-listed Heartland Group, lifted reverse-mortgage originations 35.8 per cent to $548.2 million in FY26 as its broker relationships grew by more than 20 per cent.
The specialist lender’s Australian reverse-mortgage receivables increased $391 million, or 19.7 per cent, to $2.37 billion over the financial year.
The performance underpinned Heartland’s position as the country’s leading reverse-mortgage provider, with more than 40 per cent market share and a 55 per cent share of new reverse-mortgage business.
Heartland attributed the result to sustained demand from older home owners and continued expansion across its distribution channels.
“Reverse mortgages continued to deliver strong growth, supported by ongoing customer demand and continued momentum across both direct and intermediary channels,” it said.
The lender added that the more than 20 per cent increase in broker relationships contributed to higher reverse-mortgage origination volumes and greater visibility with key aggregator and referral partners.
Book growth meets solid credit metrics
Heartland said the average age of the youngest borrower among new reverse-mortgage customers was 72.
The lender reported a FY26 repayment rate of 16.2 per cent, compared with 15.6 per cent a year earlier and added that average time to repayment was 5.3 years.
Voluntary repayments accounted for 76 per cent of exits, and involuntary repayments represented the remaining 24 per cent.
Despite the rapid book growth, Heartland said portfolio quality remained resilient.
Its Australian reverse-mortgage book had a non-performing loan ratio of 0.74 per cent, an average loan size of $223,000, and a weighted average current loan-to-value ratio of 24.8 per cent.
The lender said the relatively low average LVR provided it with a sizeable property-equity buffer, which is an important risk measure in reverse mortgages where interest typically accrues over the life of the loan, and repayment is generally triggered by a sale, death, or permanent departure from the secured property.
Platform migration underway
Heartland said it was also seeking to support further expansion with a core-platform consolidation program in partnership with Constantinople, an AI-native banking and technology platform.
The lender said the program would consolidate multiple platforms into a single core banking system and strengthen customer and broker processes through “faster decisioning, streamlined digital workflows and greater automation”.
The first phase of its reverse-mortgage platform launched in July 2026, with about 40 per cent of new reverse-mortgage originations already processed on it.
Heartland said it expected to transition its existing reverse-mortgage broker channels and move all new reverse-mortgage originations onto the platform by the end of FY27.
The lender has projected 20 per cent reverse-mortgage growth in FY27.
[Related: Housing-rich retirees tap just 1% of equity pool]
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