Based in Tauranga, First Mortgage Trust has been helping New Zealanders generate wealth through investment and property ventures for more than 25 years.
First Mortgage Trust (FMT) began in 1996 when three local law firms: Sharp Tudhope, Cooney Lees Morgan and Holland Beckett Law established the business. Soon after, Te Awamutu’s Edmonds Judd and Matamata’s Edmonds Marshall joined.
FMT has continued to go from strength to strength and has over $1.5 billion invested and over $1.3 billion in loans. FMT is the country’s largest non-bank first mortgage lender.
Paul Bendall CEO says, “We’re very proud of the integral role we have had in growing the wealth of everyday New Zealanders. Today we have over 5,700 clients and also have offices in Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington. This geographical spread means we are across what is happening in the key economic areas – which is essential for the lending side of our business.”
Committed to the Bay
The Bay of Plenty is a key area for FMT. Paul says, “We’re heavily invested in the Bay of Plenty. We employ over 35 people in our Tauranga office and a large percentage of our clients are from the region.
For us, it’s all about making investing and borrowing easy for our clients and helping kiwis grow their wealth, whether that be through investing or providing them funding.”
Helping New Zealanders grow their wealth
There are two sides to FMT – investing and property funding.
FMT are relatively conservative in their lending and investment strategies. This is demonstrated by FMT’s average loan to value ratio being approximately 50% over its entire loan book. This approach has seen FMT provide investors with consistent returns each quarter and they have never lost any investor capital even during the Global Financial Crisis and more recently through the COVID pandemic.
The rise of the non-bank lenders
FMT provides first-mortgage secured funds to enable residential, commercial, industrial, retail and rural property investments and developments, as well as offering bridging finance and equity release.
The FMT lending team pride themselves on their ‘can do’ approach and ease of doing business. They take the time to understand the lending transaction as a whole and are committed to fostering a real sense of partnership with mortgage advisers and clients.
As a non-bank provider, they are different from traditional lending institutions where service can often be regarded as transactional. This approach has seen FMT successfully assist thousands of borrowers in their property and/or business journey, which in turn has helped to grow the wealth of thousands of investors.
If you’re looking for an investment offering consistent returns or property finance, contact FMT.
