Specialist Auckland-based property lender, Lendr has secured an immediate $100 million warehouse funding facility from Westpac.

The new warehouse facility will enable Lendr to further expand its residential property lending capability nationwide, providing additional funding capacity for mortgage advisers seeking flexible finance for clients.

Marking a significant milestone for Lendr, general manager Eoin O’Grady, says it reflects increasing institutional support for specialist lenders as borrowers and property transactions become more complex.

While the major banks continue to dominate residential lending, a growing segment of the market requires funding that falls outside traditional credit policy.

Developers managing completed stock, investors with more complex ownership structures and borrowers with non-standard lending requirements are increasingly turning to specialist lenders for finance that complements the mainstream banking sector, O’Grady says.

“Securing this warehouse funding facility reflects confidence in our underwriting, governance and servicing capability, while providing the funding platform to support our next phase of growth.

He says demand for specialist lending continues to increase as advisers encounter borrowers whose circumstances don’t always align with traditional bank lending policies.

“This facility strengthens Lendr’s ability to serve these borrowers at scale while providing advisers with genuine certainty of settlement, creating meaningful competition and choice in New Zealand’s non-bank lending market.”

The transaction also reflects a broader trend within the financial services sector, with institutional funding increasingly supporting specialist lending platforms that demonstrate disciplined credit management, strong governance and scalable operations, O’Grady says.

As the lending landscape continues to evolve, relationships between major banks and specialist lenders are expected to play an increasingly important role in broadening access to capital, increasing competition and giving borrowers greater choice.