Guides & answers

Asset-backed lending is capital raised against an asset your company or trust already owns — most often property — assessed mainly on the equity in that asset and a clear exit rather than years of financials. It's an umbrella over a set of specific instruments — caveat loans, second mortgages, bridging, equity release and commercial mortgages — and the right one depends on how fast you need it, how much, and how it's repaid.

Yes. Asset-secured funding can sit behind a bank's first mortgage as a second-ranking facility — either a caveat lodged on title or a registered second mortgage — so a company or trust can release equity without refinancing a well-priced senior loan. Whether the bank needs to agree, and how fast it does, usually sets the timeline.

No — a company or trust borrowing for a genuine business purpose does not need a credit licence. Australia's consumer-credit licensing regime, the NCCP Act, applies to credit given to individuals for personal use; it doesn't reach business-purpose loans to companies and trusts. Licensing, where it applies at all, is a question for the provider side of a deal, never the borrower.

A business purpose declaration is a short statement you sign before a loan settles, confirming the credit is for business or investment use rather than personal use. It keeps a business loan outside Australia's consumer credit regime — the responsible-lending and hardship rules built for household borrowing. For companies and trusts borrowing against property for a business reason, it is a routine, one-page part of the file.

Both raise capital against property your company or trust already owns, sitting behind your existing first mortgage — but a caveat loan is faster and lighter, while a second mortgage supports larger, slightly longer needs. The right one comes down to speed, size and your exit.

A straightforward caveat-backed loan can settle in 24–72 hours — many clean deals within two business days — while a second mortgage or more complex facility usually takes several days to a week or more. The difference is how the security is taken, and how quickly the title, the valuation and your exit can be confirmed.

A caveat loan is short-term funding for a company or trust, secured by a caveat lodged on property you already own. It sits behind your existing mortgage — no refinance — so it can settle in days rather than weeks, assessed mainly on your equity and a clear exit rather than full financials.

How much you can borrow against property comes down to its loan-to-value ratio (LVR) — the share of the property's value that the total debt represents. For asset-secured business lending that's typically up to 65–75% of value, depending on the loan type, the asset and where the facility sits behind any existing mortgage. The figure that governs it is the combined LVR: all debt against the property, not just the new advance.