BETTERBOND: Cutting the Wait

In South Africa’s property landscape, few processes can frustrate and delay a sale like home loan approval. Prospective buyers often wait weeks – sometimes months – just to find out if they can secure finance, while real estate agents juggle incomplete paperwork, uncertain prospects and time-consuming administration. For those navigating this space, it’s a familiar but costly grind.

And the product offerings available? Uniform, rigid and centrally dictated by the banks. Despite South Africa’s unique socio-economic conditions and consumer needs, the home loan space has for decades remained curiously resistant to innovation – until now.

BetterBond, a leading bond origination firm owned by the BetterHome Group, is on a mission to rewrite the playbook. With a sharp focus on technology, consumer convenience and deep-rooted relationships, the company has carved out a 15% share of the national home loan market, and it’s growing.

“We are a bond originator at our core,” says Bradd Bendall, BetterBond’s National Head of Sales. “We also offer our clients insurance solutions including homeowner’s cover and life of bond holder cover. Furthermore, we have invested in prop-tech with our parent company, the BetterHome Group. That has a number of advantages for our real estate partners.”

Founded in 2000, BetterBond now boasts 372 employees and long-standing partnerships with all of South Africa’s major financial institutions. But it’s not just scale that sets it apart – it’s service.

SPEED AND SERVICE

“Bond origination in SA is very different to the rest of the world. Here, we don’t have the luxury of product differentiation. Our offering as a bond originator is quite generic but our service is not,” says Bendall. “Our turnaround times are better than our competitors and our ability to get our consumer a better rate concession is better than others (our average rate concession is .65% where our competitors average around .58%).”

That difference – small on paper, but powerful in practice – has earned BetterBond a reputation as the most hands-on, most effective broker in the country. And the key to that has been embracing technology, while still investing in people.

“Where we differentiate ourselves at the moment is through prop-tech. We can fetch bank statements, proof of identity, and we can collate that info before giving the consumer an answer within minutes on whether they will be approved for a home loan.”

This level of automation is a sea-change for the industry. Previously, pre-approval could take days. Today, BetterBond can deliver it in 15 minutes.

“Automation and digitisation of documentation has been a big win for us, and we went to market with a pre-approval process that has reduced that time from 48 hours to 15 minutes – that has been a major benefit to the consumer,” Bendall confirms.

For BetterBond’s real estate partners, this means certainty and clarity at speed – an increasingly vital advantage in a competitive property market.

PARTNERS IN PROPERTY

In an industry where relationships often make or break a sale, BetterBond’s model is built on partnership. Estate agents are not just lead providers – they’re core clients.

“In our business in South Africa we have two customers – the home purchaser or the consumer, and the real estate partner who provides leads. On the real estate side, we look to lock them in and create lasting relationships,” says Bendall.

BetterBond works hard at adding value for its estate agent partners. Through insights, tools and technology, it helps agents work more efficiently – making them more likely to send leads in return.

“In the real estate space, being able to pre-approve a potential buyer is really important,” Bendall explains. “Now, the agent has an advantage as they know when they take a buyer to see a home, that buyer can afford it. We have also added value through various reports, including area insight reports from our partners, all tools that assist the agent in being more efficient and effective on a day-to-day basis.”

This mutually beneficial relationship is supported by BetterBond’s extensive banking network. “Our key product suppliers are the banks, such as Nedbank. The partnerships we build with them are critical to our business. We have long-standing relationships, and we work with all the leading banks and some of the smaller financial institutions.”

Bendall adds: “Ultimately, everything is about relationships, and the quality of our relationships determines whether an agent decides to work with us or not. They need the sale to be concluded and if a home loan is required, they want that done in the fastest and most efficient way possible.”

SHAPING THE FUTURE

With the BetterHome Group is expanding globally – taking a significant stake in UK-based home loan partners in late 2024 – there’s scope for international learning and evolution. But for BetterBond, the mission remains firmly domestic: drive ownership, improve access and modernise the industry.

“Going forward, BetterBond will continue automating. We are always going to search for what the new-look bond originator looks like in South Africa. Is it automated from A to Z or is it with consultants or is it a combination of both? We are not sure yet, but what is sure is that bond origination in SA is changing radically.”

One of the more ambitious goals? Slashing the time it takes to register a bond.

“We are always challenging the status quo. It takes around three months for a home loan to be registered, and we believe that it should be done within 48 hours. That is an idea being developed through a partnership between us and the Deeds Office.”

Beyond process efficiency, BetterBond is also examining market inclusivity. The average age of first-time buyers in South Africa is currently 36. That, says Bendall, has to change.

“We must look at how we can assist South Africans to own their own homes earlier in their lifecycle. With the average age of first-time buyers at 36, that is clearly an area that needs attention. As a subsect of that, we need to make education of the homebuying process available to previously disadvantaged groups in South Africa and create a far greater reach.”

BROADENING THE MARKET

Another growth focus is extending BetterBond’s relevance across the property value chain – from lower-income first-time buyers to wealthy individuals bonding tens of millions.

“Right now, we play in the R500,000 to R2 million segment. I’d like to understand how we speak to people across the property market, those buying at R30 million wanting to bond R10 million of that. How do we become relevant in their space?”

The answer lies in flexibility, technology and a multi-channel service model that blends personal consulting with digital automation.

“Transforming the bond origination industry is what I am most focussed on,” says Bendall. “That will likely be a combination of automating processes and bringing younger people into the market who think differently and appeal to a different type of market.”

BetterBond is also facing forward when it comes to talent. With the average home loan consultant and estate agent now significantly older than the average customer, a new generation must be attracted to the industry.

“In the real estate industry in SA, we have a large challenge in terms of the average age of our home loan consultants and agents. The exciting part right now is understanding what the succession plan looks like.”

RESILIENCE AND VISION

Of course, navigating South Africa’s challenging economic climate hasn’t always been smooth sailing. From the 2008 global financial crisis to the Covid-19 pandemic, BetterBond has shown remarkable resilience.

“Without a doubt, the biggest challenge we have faced was the financial crisis in 2008. Bond originators in SA lost 90% of their revenue overnight,” recalls Bendall. “Covid was also an incredible challenge. We didn’t lay anyone off, we managed to find ways to do business remotely, even though it was tough. It has led to the automation of the business being expedited, and that has been a good thing.”

Despite macroeconomic pressure – from inflation to interest rates and stubbornly high unemployment – BetterBond continues to see opportunity.

“We are looking at bond origination of the future. We want to be revolutionary. We want to change it in South Africa and make it more effective, efficient and accessible.”

A PLATFORM FOR PROGRESS

Backed by strong banking relationships, cutting-edge prop-tech and a clear strategic vision, BetterBond is not just brokering home loans – it’s helping shape a better, more inclusive market.

And Bendall, with more than two decades in the industry, sees only potential ahead.

“I have been in the industry for 22 years. I have been in a fortunate position to work with the two biggest bond originators in SA – I grew up in Ooba and moved to BetterBond three years ago.”

With a strong foundation, a deep understanding of the market and a passion for transformation, BetterBond is well-positioned to lead South Africa’s bond origination space into its next era – faster, fairer and fit for purpose.