The Equity Release Solution Your International High-Net-Worth Clients With US Real Estate Have Been Waiting For, and the Referral Relationship That Rewards You for Making the Introduction
How private bankers, wealth advisors, external asset managers, independent asset managers, family office advisors, real estate agents, immigration attorneys, corporate services firms, and all professional intermediaries who serve internationally mobile high-net-worth clients can solve one of the most consistent and most financially significant gaps in their service offering, and earn a competitive referral fee for every client they introduce to Global Mortgage Group
You have a client. They are internationally mobile, high-net-worth, and financially sophisticated. They own real estate in the United States: in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Aspen, Hawaii, or another premium American market. The property has appreciated significantly. The equity is real and substantial, USD 2 million, USD 5 million, USD 10 million or more. And they need capital.
They have asked you, their trusted advisor, whether there is a way to access that equity without selling the property. Without moving their investments to a bank that has imposed an AUM condition as the price of lending. Without the American banking system telling them they do not qualify because they do not have a Social Security Number and their income is in the wrong currency.
Until now, your honest answer has been: not really. The US banks cannot serve them. Their home country private bank wants AUM. The conventional cross-border mortgage market has no product that works for their situation.
Global Mortgage Group changes that answer. And we want to work with you to deliver it to your clients.
This is the GMG Professional Intermediary Partner guide, for every professional who serves internationally mobile high-net-worth clients and who wants to add US real estate equity release to their service capability.
The Problem Your Clients Have — and Why You Have Not Been Able to Solve It
The international high-net-worth owner of US real estate faces a financing gap that is structural, consistent, and widely experienced across every private banking market in the world. It is not unique to any nationality, any income level, or any property market. It affects British families with Hamptons estates, Chinese business dynasties with Beverly Hills homes, Swiss high-net-worth investors with Aspen properties, Brazilian families with Fisher Island apartments, and Indian technology founders with Silicon Valley residences, equally and consistently.
The gap exists because the American mortgage and home equity lending system was built for one borrower profile and one borrower profile only: the domestic American resident with a Social Security Number, a W-2 income from a US employer, and a FICO credit score. Every internationally mobile high-net-worth property owner — regardless of their global wealth, their professional standing, or their decades of US property ownership — falls outside that profile. And when they fall outside that profile, the American system has no framework for serving them.
Their home country private bank faces the same challenge from the other direction. British private banks: Coutts, Barclays Private Bank, HSBC Private Bank, will lend against US real estate but only if the client consolidates substantial AUM as a condition of the facility. Swiss private banks — UBS, Julius Baer, Pictet, Lombard Odier, and hundreds of independent Swiss asset managers — apply the same AUM condition. The client rejects the condition. The conversation ends.
The result: a generation of internationally mobile high-net-worth individuals sitting on USD 1 million, USD 5 million, USD 20 million of US real estate equity that they cannot access — and a generation of private bankers, wealth advisors, and family office professionals who cannot solve this problem for their clients.
Global Mortgage Group solves it. And we want you to be the advisor who delivers that solution.
What GMG Does and Why We Are Not Your Competition
This is the most important point in this article for professional intermediaries who are considering a referral relationship with GMG, so we will state it as clearly as possible.
GMG is a specialist international property finance firm. We provide equity release facilities and long-term mortgage products against US real estate for internationally mobile high-net-worth borrowers. That is what we do. It is the entirety of what we do.
We do not manage investment portfolios. We do not offer wealth management services. We do not provide financial planning, investment advice, or asset allocation services. We do not compete for AUM. We do not have a private banking capability. We do not offer insurance, structured products, foreign exchange, or any other financial product beyond property finance.
When you introduce a client to GMG, you are introducing them to a specialist who will solve one specific financing problem and then step back. The client's investment portfolio, wealth management relationship, estate planning structure, and broader advisory relationship remain entirely with you. GMG does not use the financing introduction as a platform to expand into the client's broader financial life.
We complement your service offering. We do not compete with it.
This non-competition positioning is the foundation of every GMG referral relationship. We understand that your client relationships are built on trust, years of service, and deep personal knowledge. We have no interest in disrupting those relationships. We have every interest in making you more valuable to your clients by giving you a solution that you previously could not offer.
How the GMG Referral Relationship Works
The referral process is designed to be simple, professional, and efficient, requiring minimal time from you while delivering a complete solution for your client.
Step 1 — You identify a client situation
A client mentions that they need capital and have significant equity in their US property. Or you are reviewing a client's asset position and identify that their US real estate equity is the most efficient capital source for a specific need. Or a client asks whether there is any way to avoid selling their American property to meet a capital requirement. You recognise the situation as one that GMG can address.
Step 2 — You make the introduction
You introduce the client to Donald Klip at GMG, by email, by phone, or in person if you and your client are in Singapore or another location where GMG has a presence. The introduction is simple: "I have a client who owns US real estate and wants to explore equity release, can you speak with them?" GMG handles everything from that point.
Step 3 — GMG engages directly with the client
GMG conducts an initial consultation with the client, gathering the basic property details, understanding the capital need, and providing an indicative view of whether equity release is feasible. You are welcome to be present for this conversation or to leave it entirely to GMG, whichever works best for your client relationship.
Step 4 — GMG issues an indicative term sheet
Within 24 to 48 hours of receiving the basic property information, GMG issues an indicative equity release term sheet to the client. The term sheet sets out the proposed loan amount, the LTV, the interest rate, the term, and the key conditions. The client reviews the term sheet, with your guidance if appropriate.
Step 5 — If the client proceeds, GMG manages the full process
GMG manages the valuation, the legal assessment, the beneficial ownership due diligence, the AML compliance, and the drawdown, from term sheet to funds in the client's account typically in 10 to 20 business days for standard structures.
Step 6 — GMG pays you a competitive referral fee on drawdown
On the successful drawdown of the equity release facility, GMG pays the referring intermediary a competitive referral fee calculated as a percentage of the loan amount. The fee is paid to the referring firm or entity, not to the individual advisor personally, consistent with the regulatory frameworks applicable in most jurisdictions. The referral fee is documented in a formal GMG Referral Partner Agreement that sets out the fee terms, the compliance obligations of both parties, and the payment mechanics.
The Referral Fee
GMG pays a competitive referral fee on every successfully drawn equity release facility introduced by a registered referral partner.
The fee is paid on drawdown, not on application, not on term sheet, and not on credit approval. The referral partner earns the fee only when the facility is successfully completed and the client has received their funds. This aligns the referral partner's interest with GMG's and with the client's, everyone benefits from a successful outcome.
The fee is paid to the referring firm or entity, the private bank, the wealth management company, the independent asset management firm, the family office, the law firm, or the corporate services provider, in accordance with the regulatory framework applicable to that firm's jurisdiction and licence type.
The formal GMG Referral Partner Agreement, a straightforward document that sets out the referral fee terms, the compliance obligations, and the payment process, is provided to all registered referral partners before the first introduction is made. The agreement is designed to support the referring firm's compliance with its applicable regulatory obligations, including client disclosure requirements in regulated markets such as Switzerland (FinSA/FinIA), Singapore (MAS), the United Kingdom (FCA), Hong Kong (SFC), and Australia (ASIC).
To discuss the referral fee structure and to receive the GMG Referral Partner Agreement, contact Donald Klip at [email protected].
The Client Situations Where GMG Can Help: A Quick Reference Guide for Advisors
The following scenarios are the most consistent equity release situations that GMG encounters across its international high-net-worth client base. Use this as a quick reference when reviewing your client portfolio for GMG referral opportunities.
The AUM condition client
Your client has approached their private bank: Swiss, British, European, or Asian, for equity release against their US property. The bank has offered to lend but requires AUM consolidation as a condition. The client has rejected the condition. GMG provides the same equity release facility with no AUM requirement.
The foreign national with no US credit history
Your client owns significant US real estate but has never lived in the United States, has no Social Security Number, no FICO credit score, and income earned entirely outside America. The US lending system cannot process their application. GMG's asset-led assessment requires none of these.
The offshore structure holder
Your client's US property is held through a BVI company, a Cayman trust, a Jersey discretionary trust, a Liechtenstein Anstalt, a Panama SA, a Hong Kong limited company, or another offshore vehicle. The conventional US equity release market will not lend against the structure. GMG lends against it, subject to beneficial ownership due diligence.
The complex income borrower
Your client's income, whether from a Chinese manufacturing business, a German family holding company, a French SCI, a Swiss AG, a Middle Eastern family office, or a combination of corporate and investment income across multiple jurisdictions, cannot be assessed by conventional US mortgage underwriting. GMG's asset-led assessment does not require income to conform to US mortgage documentation standards.
The retired or semi-retired high-net-worth client
Your client has retired or reduced their active income, and the conventional US home equity lending system's debt-to-income assessment produces a loan amount that is entirely disconnected from their actual net worth and the value of their US property. GMG's retained interest structure, which requires no monthly repayment and is assessed on property value and exit strategy rather than income, is the natural solution.
The time-sensitive opportunity
Your client has identified an investment opportunity, a property acquisition, or a business need that requires capital within two to four weeks, a timeline that the conventional US equity release process cannot meet. GMG's 24 to 48 hour term sheet and 10 to 20 business day drawdown timeline can meet this need.
The off-plan completion client
Your client purchased a US branded residence or luxury condominium off-plan and has received a completion payment notice with a 30 to 60 day deadline. GMG's equity release against an existing US property provides the completion capital within the developer's timeline.
The 1031 exchange bridge
Your client is executing a 1031 like-kind exchange and needs bridge capital to complete the replacement property acquisition within the 45-day identification and 180-day closing timeline. GMG's equity release against an existing US property provides the bridge.
Who Can Become a GMG Referral Partner
GMG works with professional intermediaries across every discipline and every jurisdiction who serve internationally mobile high-net-worth clients with US real estate positions. Our referral partner community includes:
Private banks and private banking relationship managers: The major international private banks and their relationship managers in Switzerland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, London, and all major financial centres. GMG's referral relationship specifically addresses the AUM condition gap, giving private banking relationship managers a solution for clients who reject the AUM condition.
External asset managers and independent asset managers: EAMs and IAMs in Switzerland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, and other financial centres who manage client portfolios on a discretionary or advisory basis and who want to add US property equity release to their client service capability.
Multi-family offices and single-family office investment teams: Family offices managing portfolios that include US real estate positions, for whom GMG provides the specialist financing component of the overall portfolio management mandate.
Independent financial advisors and wealth managers: IFAs and wealth managers in regulated markets including Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the UAE who serve internationally mobile high-net-worth clients.
Real estate agents and brokers: US and international real estate professionals who work with international high-net-worth buyers in American markets, and who can introduce existing US property owners to GMG's equity release programme.
Immigration attorneys and US visa advisors: Legal professionals who work with EB-5 investors, E-2 visa holders, and other internationally mobile individuals who have US property as a component of their US immigration strategy.
International tax advisors: Tax professionals who advise on US real estate ownership structures and who identify client situations where equity release is more tax-efficient than a property sale.
Corporate services firms, trust companies, and law firms: Professional services firms in offshore financial centres who manage client structures holding US real estate, already addressed in the Unlocked in America: Offshore Structures guide, but equally relevant here as referral partners.
US-based real estate attorneys: American legal professionals who work with international high-net-worth buyers on US property acquisition and who maintain ongoing relationships with their internationally mobile clients.
Relocation specialists and international HR advisors: Professionals who assist internationally mobile executives and their families in establishing US property positions and who maintain ongoing relationships with those clients as their US real estate equity grows.
The GMG Product Suite: What You Can Offer Your Clients
Through GMG and America Mortgages, you can offer your internationally mobile high-net-worth clients the following US property finance solutions:
Equity release, the core GMG product
Senior secured equity release facilities against US residential and commercial real estate for international high-net-worth foreign nationals, non-US residents, US expatriates, and offshore structure holders. Assessed on property value and exit strategy.
- Loan size: USD 500,000 to USD 100,000,000+
- Term: 6 to 24 months
- LTV: Up to 65–70% of independently appraised US market value
- Interest: Retained or rolled up — no monthly payment obligation
- Timeline: Term sheet 24–48 hours; drawdown 10–20 business days
America Mortgages long-term products, for clients who want permanent US financing
Foreign National Mortgage: Long-term US mortgage for non-US citizens and non-residents assessed on foreign income, available across all 50 US states
DSCR Mortgage: Investment property mortgage assessed on rental income rather than personal income, ideal for internationally mobile investors with US rental properties
Expat Mortgage: Long-term US mortgage for US citizens living and working abroad whose foreign income makes conventional US mortgage qualification impossible
All America Mortgages products are available across all 50 US states and are specifically designed for the internationally mobile high-net-worth borrower.
Contact Donald Klip, and Become a GMG Referral Partner
If you are a professional intermediary who serves internationally mobile high-net-worth clients with US real estate positions and you want to discuss a referral partnership with GMG, contact Donald Klip directly.
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +65 9773-0273
Website: gmg.asia
America Mortgages: americamortgages.com
To receive the GMG Referral Partner Agreement and to discuss the referral fee structure, email [email protected] with the subject line "Referral Partner Enquiry" and a brief description of your firm and your client base.
To discuss a specific client situation on a no-names basis before making a formal introduction, call or email Donald Klip directly. We are happy to give you a preliminary view of whether equity release is feasible for a specific client situation before you introduce the client formally.
GMG is headquartered in Singapore and operates across 23 jurisdictions. We are available for in-person meetings in Singapore and across the Asia-Pacific region, and by video conference for intermediaries in Europe, the Middle East, the Americas, and beyond.
