The broker channel has tightened its hold on new residential lending, with market share surging to record heights, despite a cooling demand backdrop.
Mortgage brokers arranged a record 81.6 per cent of Australia’s new residential home loans in the June 2026 quarter, according to Cotality data commissioned by the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia (MFAA).
The result lifted the broker channel’s share by 0.6 percentage points from the previous record of 81 per cent in the March quarter and by four percentage points from 77.6 per cent a year earlier.
Brokers facilitated $139.08 billion in new home lending during the June quarter, up $17.49 billion on the same period last year and the largest volume recorded for a June quarter.
The latest outcome extends a pronounced long-term shift in mortgage distribution.
Broker market share has risen by 27.7 percentage points over the eight years of MFAA survey data, from 53.9 per cent in June 2018 to 81.6 per cent in June 2026.
An established lending channel
MFAA chief executive Anja Pannek said the latest reading underlined the increasingly central role of brokers in the way Australians access home finance.
“Australia is one of only three countries globally, alongside the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, where mortgage brokers facilitate more than 80% of mortgage lending,” Pannek said.
Pannek said that the continued expansion reflected a more fundamental change in borrower behaviour and the role consumers see intermediaries playing in their lending decisions.
“This result is a clear sign of how Australians now choose to access home lending and the value they see in having someone in their corner,” Pannek noted.
Share rises as demand cools
The record share comes amid overall mortgage demand weakening following three consecutive cash-rate rises earlier this year and federal budget changes to investor property tax settings.
Overall mortgage demand was 16.4 per cent lower year on year in July, following annual falls of 0.9 per cent in April, 6.6 per cent in May and 18.8 per cent in June.
First home buyer demand has softened more sharply than the wider market, declining 19.1 per cent annually in July after falling 20.9 per cent in June.
Major-bank application data has also pointed to a significant post-budget slowdown, with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), Westpac, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and the National Australia Bank (NAB) reporting significantly softer mortgage application flows.
The MFAA’s June 2026 report is the 55th consecutive quarterly market-share publication since the series began in 2013. Cotality compiles the figures using settlement data supplied by leading aggregators and broker groups
[Related: Mortgage slump spreads across every state and age group]
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