HEALTH CARE PARTNERING WITH NON BANK LENDERS
By MELVIN J. HOWARD
The advent of non-bank lending institutions, whose only business is making loans. Have opened new doors for Health care developers, Physicians and Hospitals who need capital to start, build and grow their businesses. Medical facilities in businesses that do not typically qualify for conventional financing have discovered that non-bank lenders offer a viable alternative. Medical facilities such as specialty hospitals and clinic, physicians practices or small regional hospital centers that are difficult for banks to finance because they are single use properties, or the medical facility fall’s outside the bank's risk profile. Although it might seem that banks and non-banks would be rivals competing for Small Business customers. Increasingly conventional banks and non-banks are collaborating to benefit both the customer and themselves.
Partnering with a non-bank lender benefits the conventional lender in several ways. Perhaps most significant is that such a partnership can provide a bank an opportunity to say "yes" to a prospective borrower. Banks receive numerous loan inquiries through their broad networks of branches and business development officers. Many requests are turned down because they do not fit the bank's desired risk profile. However, these same prospects are likely to have deposits and/or other banking needs, both of which are desirable to a bank for its operations and overall profitability. Loans referred to a non-bank lender provide an opportunity for a bank to outsource loans it cannot approve while maintaining the profitable, non-credit portion of the relationship.
Non-banks can also serve as an outplacement resource for a bank's existing credit situations that no longer meet its desired risk profile. For example, as a result of a merger or acquisition, a bank may find that it now has a number of loans that do not fit its risk profile. A lender may also wish to outplace a loan that is performing, but is no longer desirable due to changes in loan-to-value, covenant violations or changes in operations. A non-bank lender may be able to refinance the loan, usually over a longer term and without covenants, thus improving the customer's cash flow and stability and removing the risk from the bank's balance sheet without impacting the remainder of the bank relationship.
A partnership between banks and non-banks ultimately benefits the customer. First and foremost, a non-bank often provides access to financing that is not available from a conventional lender. Furthermore, the customer's borrowing needs are met in a permanent way. Term loans do not have to be balloon payments, eliminating the need for a borrower to refinance the loan in 5 or 10 years. Therefore, the costs associated with a long-term loan (i.e. appraisals, environmental reports, and legal costs) are incurred just once.
When working with a non-bank lender, a customer can be assured that the lender is focused entirely on the loan transaction. Because a non-bank lender is interested only in the loan transaction, there is no need for a customer to unwind its banking relationship or move its deposit accounts. Many non-bank lenders have earned "preferred" lender status enabling them to provide quick turnaround on loan decisions with a high level of expertise in the loan process, thus providing a customer with painless fulfillment of it financing need.
Key to understanding how the bank and the non-bank work together, is an understanding of how they are different. Aside from the organizational or structural differences, how does a non-bank lender differ from a conventional bank? First, non-banks' only business is that of making loans. They do not take deposits or sell other services such as payroll, cash management, etc.
Contrary to popular opinion, non-bank lenders are not necessarily more aggressive in their evaluation of a loan request. However, because their loans are not funded by deposits and because they are not subject to the same set of regulations as banks, the non-banks can and will consider industries and situations conventional lenders will typically shy away from. Examples of industries that non-bank lenders will consider include gas stations/convenience stores, auto body shops, car washes, restaurants and the hospitality industry (hotels/motels). In addition, non-bank lenders are willing to consider situations, such as start-up businesses or businesses/individuals with problematic credit histories, which are generally perceived as being higher-risk.
Non-bank lenders can also be flexible in other ways. For example, non-bank lenders are typically long-term lenders, with a desired loan term of seven to 25 years, depending on the use of loan proceeds. In addition, many non-bank lenders lend nationally and are not restricted to a particular region or "footprint." Lastly, non-bank lenders often take a more holistic approach to a loan request, particularly with regards to collateral. As business assets may be insufficient to adequately secure a loan, a non-bank lender will often look to the availability of other assets as part of the entire collateral pool.
As we often hear, small and regional clinics and hospitals are the backbone of rural communities. They are often also the backbone of a bank's branch deposit base and overall profitability. By partnering with a non-bank lender, a bank can benefit both itself and its health care commercial customers.
