Brokers are increasingly turning to non-banks for lending solutions, with new Broker Pulse data showing that broker usage hit a three-year high in October 2025.
The latest Broker Pulse: Residential Lending report by Agile Market Intelligence confirms that brokers are increasingly turning to the non-bank sector for their clients.
The survey – based on responses from 316 residential brokers collected between 1 and 17 November 2025 – found that 53 per cent of brokers used at least one non-bank lender in October 2025 – the highest proportion recorded since mid-2022.
This finding indicates that non-bank and specialist lenders are increasingly utilised as solutions within the broker channel.
The primary reason brokers are turning to non-banks at the moment is the fact that they have policies that fit their clients’ circumstances (83 per cent). This is historically the dominant attractor for non-bank loans, but this has increased 2 percentage points since September 2025. For example, product pricing was cited as a primary attractor by just 13 per cent of brokers. This indicates the non-bank segment’s central role in accommodating clients whose profiles require specialised assessment.
Firstmac was the most popular non-bank lender used by brokers, with 9 per cent of all brokers submitting applications to it in October. It was followed in popularity by Pepper Money and La Trobe Financial (both 8 per cent) and Liberty Financial (7 per cent).
However, Resimac was the highest-rated non-bank lender over the three months to October – according to Broker Pulse – with a 90 per cent broker experience rating.
Advantedge (soon to be mothballed) followed in second place, with 88 per cent, a five-point improvement from last month.
AFG Home Loans and Liberty Financial were tied in third place – with 83 per cent – while Pepper Money joined the top five non-banks, with a broker experience rating of 82 per cent.
Despite the growing role of non-bank lenders, the bigger banks remain the most commonly used.
ANZ was the most used major lender, recording 47 per cent of broker-submitted applications in October. Macquarie Bank followed with 44 per cent broker usage, positioning it as the largest mid-tier lender by usage and maintaining strong flow compared to the major banks.
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) recorded 39 per cent broker usage, ahead of Westpac (38 per cent) and NAB (32 per cent).
[Related: Turnarounds blowout as loan demand soars]
