Latest broker recommendations: Pepper Money for client fit, People’s Choice and Newcastle Permanent for product pricing, and Macquarie Bank for speed

New data from Agile Market Intelligence reveals the key reasons why mortgage brokers are recommending specific lenders. This analysis highlights the lenders most commonly recommended by mortgage brokers driven by product pricing, client circumstances, and turnaround times based on their experience between the months of August to October.

Key stats you need to know

• 90% of brokers who submitted applications to Pepper Money recommended the lender due to client fit. 

• 83% of brokers who prefer People’s Choice and Newcastle Permanent did so due to product pricing. 

• 42% of brokers who chose Macquarie Bank based it on turnaround time. 

Pepper Money is the preferred bank for meeting their clients’ circumstances

• 90% of brokers who submitted applications to Pepper Money would recommend this lender due to their offerings matching the needs of their clients. 

In terms of client circumstances, Pepper Money is the preferred lender for brokers who availed of the non-bank’s services. Following this lender, brokers would recommend MA Money (89%), Liberty Financial (86%), and Thinktank (86%) because of how they could match the needs of their clients. Athena Home Loans is the least recommended bank for those who submitted applications to this lender, with only 59% of brokers favouring this. 

“Non-traditional lenders may offer more flexible solutions to their clients as they are not bound to the stringent regulations traditional banks are regulated by,” says Michael Johnson, Director at Agile Market Intelligence. “This allows such lenders to offer solutions which would match the circumstances and needs of their respective clients.”

People’s Choice and Newcastle Permanent favoured due to product pricing

• People’s Choice and Newcastle Permanent are the preferred choice for 83% brokers who availed their services, because of pricing reasons. 

• 78% of brokers who submitted applications to BCU and HSBC would recommend these lenders due to product pricing. 

People’s Choice and Newcastle Permanent are tied when it comes to the percentage of brokers that would recommend their services, primarily due to pricing reasons. Both would be recommended by 83% of brokers who submitted applications to the non-bank and the mid-tier bank lenders. Other favoured lenders due to their product pricing include BCU and HSBC, with 78% of brokers who availed of their services choosing them for this very reason. Rounding out at the fifth rank is ING, which is favoured by 69% of brokers that submitted applications to them. Out of all the lender types, mid-tier banks are preferred by brokers due to the competitive pricing of their products. 

Macquarie leads broker preference due to turnaround times

• For fastest turnaround time, Macquarie is the preferred lender for 42% of brokers who availed of the bank’s services. 

• NAB and CBA are the only major banks to have landed in the top 10 recommended lenders for quickest turnaround time.  

Macquarie is the most preferred lender due to its short turnaround times, a consistent advantage of this bank for the past few months. Due to their quick turnarounds, it is recommended by 42% of brokers who submitted applications to this lender. Following this bank is Assetline, which is recommended by 33% of brokers. This is rounded out by BCU and ubank, which is preferred by 22% and 19% of brokers, respectively. 

About the research

The data in this article comes from Agile Market Intelligence’s Broker Pulse: Residential Lending. The survey collected responses from 908 mortgage brokers across Australia between August and October 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.