HomeUnion, an online real estate investment management firm, has launched a new mortgage brokerage dedicated to meeting the needs of single-family rental (SFR) investors.
Dubbed HomeUnion Lending Inc., the wholly owned subsidiary will give SFR investors more options, including access to government-sponsored enterprise (GSE)-backed loans, when appropriate, and the ability to use other asset-based lending vehicles. The new brokerage will also assist investors in valuing rental income streams when making a lending decision.
Qualified investors can take out up to 10 GSE-backed mortgages for investment properties, the company says in a release. In addition, HomeUnion will work with other lenders to provide financing to investors that may want to purchase more than 10 houses or need different qualifying guidelines.
The new mortgage brokerage is currently licensed in Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Iowa and Oklahoma. HomeUnion says it expects to expand the business to another 16 states by the end of the first quarter of 2016.
‘Increasingly, we are seeing SFR investors using leverage through GSE-backed mortgages, a unique benefit for single-family home investors and other asset-based lenders to enhance their return on investment and build geographically diverse property portfolios,’ says Don Ganguly, CEO of HomeUnion, in a release. ‘By starting our own lending company, we're simplifying the investment process and providing our investors with access to mortgage professionals who specialize in SFR lending and understand the particular needs of investors seeking to use leverage. All of this will allow us to provide superior customer service to SFR investors.’
To run the new brokerage, HomeUnion has hired Chris Diaz, who has more than 18 years of mortgage industry experience. He will be responsible for building the infrastructure and running the day-to-day brokerage operations.
Previously, Diaz ran his own real estate and mortgage company, was a columnist for the Orange County Register and served as a district manager with H&R Block Mortgage.
‘HomeUnion is providing online data and analytics that help individuals intelligently buy remote SFR properties, and a dedicated SFR financing component adds a new level of customer service that simplifies the process even more,’ Diaz says in the release.