Broker recommendations: Macquarie for speed, Pepper Money for client fit, People’s Choice for pricing

The latest Broker Pulse: Residential Lending data from Agile Market Intelligence reveals key reasons why mortgage brokers are recommending specific lenders. This analysis of broker recommendations between October and December 2025 highlights the lenders most commonly recommended by mortgage brokers driven by product pricing, turnaround times and client circumstances.

Key stats you need to know

• Macquarie Bank is the preferred lender for 42% of brokers seeking speedy transactions.

• Over 9 in 10 brokers would recommend Pepper Money, citing strong product-client fit.

• 85% of brokers prefer People’s Choice for their competitive product pricing. 

42% of brokers favour Macquarie due to their fast turnaround times

• Over 2 in 5 brokers would recommend Macquarie as a lender due to their short turnaround time.

• NAB was the only major bank in the top ten lenders based on turnaround time.

Mid-tier banks dominate the top ten lenders for turnaround time, led by Macquarie Bank. Heritage Bank and ubank followed, with 14% and 10% of brokers recommending each lender, respectively. NAB was the only major bank to feature in the top ten, recommended by 9% of brokers.

“In terms of turnaround time, Macquarie Bank leads the pack due to their quick processing times, which greatly outpaced the other lenders.” said Michael Johnson, Director at Agile Market Intelligence.

Pepper Money recommended for addressing client circumstances

• 93% of brokers would recommend Pepper Money, driven by the lender’s ability to tailor their products to the needs of their clients.

• Commonwealth Bank is the only major bank in the top ten lenders preferred for client circumstances, appealing to 75% of brokers.

Non-bank lenders were the preferred type of lenders for brokers who primarily prioritise matching financial products to client circumstances. Pepper Money came out as the top pick, but is closely rivaled by Bluestone Home Loans, with 92% of brokers recommending it. La Trobe Financial claimed the third spot with 87% of brokers recommending it for client-fit.

“The flexibility of non-bank lenders allows borrowers to acquire loans for more diverse and riskier requests,” said Michael Johnson. “Thereby increasing the likelihood of the borrower’s application loan being accepted.”

More than 4 in 5 brokers recommend People’s Choice for product pricing

• People’s Choice is the favoured lender by 85% of brokers who prioritise product pricing.

• Mid-tier banks completely edge out the Majors for the top 10 lenders recommended by brokers for competitive pricing. 

Eighty-five percent of brokers recommended People’s Choice to clients due to attractive price offerings. BCU ranked second, recommended by 82% of brokers, while HSBC placed third, favoured by 80% of brokers.

“Mid-tier banks are in a competitive position by providing more affordable products to their clients,” said Michael Johnson. “This gives them the leverage to attract a greater number of brokers seeking attractive deals.”

About the research

The data in this article comes from Agile Market Intelligence’s Broker Pulse: Residential Lending. The survey collected responses from 976 mortgage brokers across Australia, and assessed lender performance between the months of October and December 2025. Brokers were asked to identify their primary reasons for recommending each lender they used during these months.

Broker Pulse offers transparency to the market by surfacing these collective insights from the broker community. This empowers brokers to make informed decisions and enables lenders to benchmark and improve performance.

Participating brokers receive access to a bird’s-eye view of the lender benchmarking data each month. To sign up or for more information, visit www.brokerpulse.com.au.