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The proptech company has appointed a head of distribution to focus on partner-led opportunities.
Co-operty has announced that Frank Austin has been appointed to the newly created role of head of distribution effective immediately.
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According to Co-operty, Austin will work with the founders of the proptech company, Lynda Coker and Liz Rochaix, and support the company’s go-to-market strategy by focusing on the mortgage broking channel.
Austin was the company secretary of former bank Volt Corp and the head of business performance and sales effectiveness at National Australia Bank (NAB). The new head of distribution was also the former head of broker development at white label home loans distributor Advantedge Financial Services.
He was the manager of planning and performance with investment management firm Challenger Limited and the home loan marketing and communications manager at St.George Bank.
Coker, Co-operty’s co-founder and chief executive, said: “Liz and I are thrilled to welcome Frank to the Co-operty team. We’re prioritising the mortgage broker channel in our go-to-market strategy and he’s the right person to help us grow those partner-led opportunities.”
Austin said that he was looking forward to supporting brokers in his new role. He said: “I’m really looking forward to supporting brokers to help more Australians onto the property ladder if the co-ownership solution is right for that client’s individual circumstances.”
Co-operty was created in 2023 in response to the nation’s housing affordability crisis. It launched its app last month to support family members and friends to purchase property with each other by clearing the financial and legal hurdles associated with co-ownership agreements.
The platform allows family or friends to set up their co-ownership agreement digitally and get in contact with third parties, such as mortgage brokers and conveyancers.
Commenting on the rising trend of buyers purchasing property with family or friends, Austin said: “Buying a property together with a friend or family member can be a really interesting option for a mortgage broker to explore with a client who can’t otherwise afford to buy a property in the current market.”
New research from non-bank ING in April found that 46 per cent of Australians believe that buying a home with someone who is not a partner or spouse would become common practice over the next 10 years if house prices continue to rise.
[Related: Interest in becoming ‘property pals’ increases: ING]
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