Private Lender For Investment Property Loans

Who This Is For and Why It Exists

Most property investors using corporate structures — a family trust, a Pty Ltd company, an SMSF — run into the same problem with banks. The property stacks up. The equity is there. But the bank's credit model is built around PAYG income, standard financials, and simple ownership structures. When the borrower is a trust drawing distributions, or a self-employed director with two companies, or an SMSF buying through a bare trust, the standard process breaks down.

Secured Lending was built for exactly this borrower profile. We lend to Pty Ltd companies, family trusts, and SMSFs only. Every loan is business-purpose lending assessed on the security property and the borrower's exit plan, not on whether the income fits a calculator. If you are borrowing in your personal name, this is not the right product.

The Three Structures We Work With

Each structure works differently from a lending perspective, and the guides in this cluster cover each one in detail.

Pty Ltd companies are the most straightforward. The company is the borrower, directors provide personal guarantees, and the loan is a full-recourse first or second mortgage. Investors use company ownership for asset protection, tax planning, and clean separation between their portfolio and personal balance sheet.

Family trusts add a layer of complexity because the trustee holds legal title and the beneficiaries hold the equity. We review the trust deed, confirm the trustee's authority to borrow, and structure the loan to the trustee company. Discretionary and unit trusts are both eligible, with terms confirmed on a case-by-case basis.

SMSFs are the most structurally specific. Under LRBA rules, the investment property must be held in a bare trust separate from the fund, with the SMSF as beneficial owner. Most banks either don't offer SMSF investment property loans at all or move too slowly for the deals that come up in practice. We work alongside your SMSF adviser and solicitor to get the structure right before settlement.

When Speed Is the Issue

A large portion of our investment property loans come from situations where timing has become the problem. Auction purchases with a 28-day settlement window. Off-market deals where the vendor wants unconditional contracts. A settlement date approaching and the bank still sitting in credit assessment. An SMSF that has waited ten weeks and cannot wait any longer.

We assess on the same day we receive a complete enquiry. For clean deals, from first call to funded can be 24 hours. We use in-house valuers, hold direct credit authority, and do not require external committee sign-off. That is the practical reason our timeline is what it is.

How to Use This Guide

The pages below are organised by borrower structure, scenario type, and decision stage. Use them to understand what applies to your situation before enquiring.

• →Investment property loans in company name
• →Trust investment property lending
• →SMSF residential property loans via LRBA
• →Self-employed investor property finance
• →Low doc investment property loans
• →Investment property finance after a bank decline
• →Investment property bridging loans
• →Equity release from investment property
• →Refinancing investment property to a private lender
• →Second mortgage on investment property
• →Private lender vs bank for investment property
• →Non-bank investment property lenders explained
• →Private lender investment property loan rates