The Singapore-based property search portal is rolling out digital home financing services such as instant in-principle approval, instant offers, refinance checks for property buyers.
PropertyGuru is expanding into home finance with the launch of mortgage marketplace PropertyGuru Finance, the company announced in a statement on Thursday.
The company cited its «Consumer Sentiment Study H1 2020» that revealed knowledge gaps about the mortgage process among prospective home buyers, with almost half of all home buyers unsure of the paperwork that is required to apply for a home loan, and 2 in 5 Singaporeans unaware that they can refinance their home loan.
Smart Tools
To help property seekers, it will offer a range of «smart tools» for every step of the home finance journey, from understanding loan eligibility and comparing loans to easily applying for multiple loans online.
It will also act as an agent’s «personal mortgage assistant,» enabling them to offer their clients (property seekers) easy access to the best available properties and home finance options from one platform.
Bjorn Sprengers, chief marketing officer and head of fintech
«As market leaders, we have a responsibility to help resolve these pain-points and much like PropertyGuru helped Singaporeans find their homes online, we now use technology to improve the process of how people will finance their homes,» Bjorn Sprengers (pictured above), chief marketing officer and head of fintech, PropertyGuru Group, said in the statement.
Market Giant
The portal has 75 percent market share in Singapore, where it was founded in 2007. It also operates digital classifieds marketplaces in five countries across Southeast Asia: Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, serving 23 property seekers per month.
In 2018, it received S$200 million ($143 million) from U.S. private equity firm KKR in a Series D funding round. It raised S$175 million from Texas-based TPG Capital, Indonesia's Emtek Group and Square Peg Capital in 2015.
In October 2019, PropertyGuru lodged a prospectus with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission for an IPO in which it hoped to raise up to A$380 million ($257 million). A month later, it said it would not proceed with its plans, citing «uncertainty in the current IPO market.»
