Borrow
1 in 3 Aussies lies to get a mortgage
Australian home buyers are allegedly inflating income and deflating expenses despite banks promising tougher lending standards following the royal commission.
1 in 3 Aussies lies to get a mortgage
Australian home buyers are allegedly inflating income and deflating expenses despite banks promising tougher lending standards following the royal commission.
According to research from UBS, 37 per cent of mortgagors were not “completely factual and accurate” when reporting their statements to banks.
It is a significant jump in inaccurate numbers, with 32 per cent of applicants lying when the royal commission was in full swing last during 2018.
Bank analyst at UBS Jonathan Mott stipulated that “since the royal commission was announced, the banks have significantly increased their level of verification, more questions are asked and more documentation is being requested”.
Despite this “tougher lending standard”, he has questioned the legitimacy of the stance, having commented that “while asking increasingly detailed questions appears prudent, it does not appear to be effective as many factually inaccurate mortgages are still working their way through the process”.
The increase in inaccurate mortgage applications was heavily concentrated across certain cohorts, the research has alleged.
Of mortgagors who bought more than one property over the last year, 63 per cent used inaccurate information, while half of mortgagors who own two or more investment properties had also lied (49 per cent).
Inaccurate mortgages were entered into by investors with interest-only mortgages 56 per cent of the time, while a similar number required the use of a guarantor to access lending (53 per cent).
Just over half of would-be borrowers who had their mortgage rejected (53 per cent) admitted having stretched the truth, while three-quarters of hopeful borrowers who had fabricated their circumstances were rejected twice or more (76 per cent).
Worryingly, the research highlighted that 22 per cent of respondents who were factually inaccurate in their application missed a mortgage payment over the last 12 months, versus 6 per cent who were factual, making a case for the need for more stringent testing of information given in loan applications.
RELATED ARTICLES
About the author
About the author
Loans
Investor refinancing hits record highs: inside Australia’s race for mobile mortgage capital
Refinancing by property investors has surged to record levels in Australia as borrowers chase sharper rates and lenders fight to defend margins. Average loan sizes have pushed to new highs even as ...Read more
Loans
Australia’s mortgage stress is back: the 2026 playbook for banks, brokers and boards
Mortgage stress has re‑accelerated after the Reserve Bank’s February move, with fresh data indicating 24.5% of owner‑occupier borrowers are under pressure. Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania are ...Read more
Loans
First-home buyers are back: what the 26% surge means for lenders, builders and boards
A record fourth-quarter rise in first-home buyer activity has reset the mortgage market’s centre of gravity. With aggregator data showing a 26% jump in first-home buyer lodgements in Q4 2025 and ...Read more
Loans
Viking’s entry rewrites Australia’s mortgage aggregation playbook: win on software, not just scale
A new residential aggregator entering Australia after a decade-plus hiatus is more than a competitive curiosity—it’s a test of whether software, data and compliance-by-design can overcome entrenched ...Read more
Loans
Australia’s credit pivot: Mortgage enquiries hit a three‑year peak as households lean on plastic — what lenders and fintechs must do next
Australian home loan interest has rebounded even as households lean harder on cards and personal loans — a classic late‑cycle signal that demands sharper risk, pricing and AI executionRead more
Loans
Trust is the new yield: Why brokers win when credibility compounds
In a market where products look interchangeable, credibility has become the most defensible asset in mortgage broking. With broker channel share hitting record highs and AI reshaping client ...Read more
Loans
Mortgage Relief Window: How Australia’s Lenders Are Rewiring Risk and Growth at a Three‑Year Lull
Australia’s mortgage stress has eased to its lowest level since early 2023, creating a rare—likely brief—window for lenders, brokers and fintechs to reset risk and rebuild growth. This case study ...Read more
Loans
Why ANZ’s tougher stance on company-borrowed home loans matters: A case study in risk recalibration, competition, and what CFOs should do next
ANZ has tightened mortgage credit parameters for loans where a company or trust is the borrower—an apparently narrow policy tweak with wide operational consequences. It signals a broader recalibration ...Read more
Loans
Investor refinancing hits record highs: inside Australia’s race for mobile mortgage capital
Refinancing by property investors has surged to record levels in Australia as borrowers chase sharper rates and lenders fight to defend margins. Average loan sizes have pushed to new highs even as ...Read more
Loans
Australia’s mortgage stress is back: the 2026 playbook for banks, brokers and boards
Mortgage stress has re‑accelerated after the Reserve Bank’s February move, with fresh data indicating 24.5% of owner‑occupier borrowers are under pressure. Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania are ...Read more
Loans
First-home buyers are back: what the 26% surge means for lenders, builders and boards
A record fourth-quarter rise in first-home buyer activity has reset the mortgage market’s centre of gravity. With aggregator data showing a 26% jump in first-home buyer lodgements in Q4 2025 and ...Read more
Loans
Viking’s entry rewrites Australia’s mortgage aggregation playbook: win on software, not just scale
A new residential aggregator entering Australia after a decade-plus hiatus is more than a competitive curiosity—it’s a test of whether software, data and compliance-by-design can overcome entrenched ...Read more
Loans
Australia’s credit pivot: Mortgage enquiries hit a three‑year peak as households lean on plastic — what lenders and fintechs must do next
Australian home loan interest has rebounded even as households lean harder on cards and personal loans — a classic late‑cycle signal that demands sharper risk, pricing and AI executionRead more
Loans
Trust is the new yield: Why brokers win when credibility compounds
In a market where products look interchangeable, credibility has become the most defensible asset in mortgage broking. With broker channel share hitting record highs and AI reshaping client ...Read more
Loans
Mortgage Relief Window: How Australia’s Lenders Are Rewiring Risk and Growth at a Three‑Year Lull
Australia’s mortgage stress has eased to its lowest level since early 2023, creating a rare—likely brief—window for lenders, brokers and fintechs to reset risk and rebuild growth. This case study ...Read more
Loans
Why ANZ’s tougher stance on company-borrowed home loans matters: A case study in risk recalibration, competition, and what CFOs should do next
ANZ has tightened mortgage credit parameters for loans where a company or trust is the borrower—an apparently narrow policy tweak with wide operational consequences. It signals a broader recalibration ...Read more
