Borrow
Broker v straight to the lender: Who goes where?
There are a number of key differences between Australians relying on mortgage brokers and those who go directly to lenders to find a home loan, according to analysis.
Broker v straight to the lender: Who goes where?
There are a number of key differences between Australians relying on mortgage brokers and those who go directly to lenders to find a home loan, according to analysis.
ASIC’s new report, titled Looking for a mortgage: Consumer experiences and expectations in getting a home loan, has looked at the home loan journey taken by Australians to look at how consumer satisfaction, costs and outcomes could be improved by lending providers and mortgage brokers.
Consumers using brokers
According to ASIC, while consumers engaged brokers for different reasons, such as expertise or the fact that a broker could “do the work for you”, they generally actually all expect the broker to deliver the same result – to get the “best” home loan, whether it refers to price or rate.
The report said consumers who choose to go through a broker are more likely to be a first home buyer, are more likely to trust the broker to find them the best interest rate, and are less likely to have conducted a lot of research and to know what home loan they might want.
In addition, the research showed that consumers going through a broker tended to be younger by about two years and have incomes around $6,000 lower than their direct-to-lender counterparts.
“Consumers who took their loan out through a broker tended to be more uncertain of the process that lay ahead,” the report read.
“This type of consumer appeared to be looking for someone who could help bridge their knowledge gap and support and advise them throughout the home lending process.”
Consumers going direct to lender
Consumers who choose to find a loan themselves are more likely to have had a loan before, more likely to think they got the best rate because they shopped around, and are also more likely to have conducted a lot of research and know what they want from a loan.
According to the survey used in the report, 60 per cent of all consumers took out a home loan with a lender they had an existing relationship with.
This figure jumped to 69 per cent for consumers who went direct to a lender, while the figure was 49 per cent for broker loans.
ASIC reported that by far the strongest factor influencing consumers to stay with a lender they have an existing relationship is convenience.
Despite the convenience of loyalty, ASIC said its research consistently found consumers that indicated they were disappointed that their lender did not offer rewards for the existing relationship.
No matter which way a consumer chooses to go, ASIC flagged that as consumers progress along the home loan journey, the importance of finding a good rate seemed to decrease for some.
Instead, they became more influenced by other factors such as the convenience of staying with an existing lender (or a lender they had an existing relationship with) and home loan features such as offset accounts.
RELATED ARTICLES
About the author
About the author
Loans
Mortgage mania: Why sluggish turnaround times are the new battleground in booming loan demand
Brokers across Australia are flagging loan processing delays precisely as borrower activity rebounds — a dangerous mismatch for lenders competing on service as much as price. The operational lesson is ...Read more
Loans
Why AI isn't penning Aussie mortgages yet trust trumps tech
Australian borrowers remain wary of AI taking the wheel on home loans, even as brokers and lenders quietly increase behind-the-scenes adoption. The trust gap is the core blocker — and it’s solvable. ...Read more
Loans
Underserved by design: A case study in turning FBAA broker density gaps into growth
Fresh FBAA data confirms broker headcount is rising past 22,000, yet coverage remains uneven — with concentrations in NSW and Victoria and pockets the association identifies as underservedRead more
Loans
The new shadow lender: How the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ is redrawing Australia’s first-home buyer market
Parental capital has become a decisive force in Australia’s housing market, accelerating deposits, lifting bidding power and creating a two‑speed pipeline of first‑home buyers. This isn’t a feel‑good ...Read more
Loans
The effortless edge: How Australian brokers turn retention into a compounding growth engine with AI and specialisation
Australia’s broking market is crowded, digital-first and unforgiving on acquisition costs. The growth story now is retention—engineered through low-effort client experiences, AI-enabled servicing and ...Read more
Loans
State Street: RBA holds rates at 3.6% as hawkish tone emerges
State Street has said the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to hold the cash rate at 3.6 per cent reflects a more hawkish policy bias, signalling that the central bank is likely to keep rates ...Read more
Loans
The effortless edge: How brokers turn low-friction service into high-retention value
Client retention in broking is no longer about squeezing a better rate at renewal. It’s about building an ‘effortless’ experience that anticipates needs, removes friction, and compounds loyalty across ...Read more
Loans
Mortgage broking 2030: from rate-hunting to AI-orchestrated advice
A new industry white paper promises a map for mortgage broking’s next decade. The real story: distribution power is shifting from rate comparison to data-led advice, and firms that industrialise AI ...Read more
Loans
Mortgage mania: Why sluggish turnaround times are the new battleground in booming loan demand
Brokers across Australia are flagging loan processing delays precisely as borrower activity rebounds — a dangerous mismatch for lenders competing on service as much as price. The operational lesson is ...Read more
Loans
Why AI isn't penning Aussie mortgages yet trust trumps tech
Australian borrowers remain wary of AI taking the wheel on home loans, even as brokers and lenders quietly increase behind-the-scenes adoption. The trust gap is the core blocker — and it’s solvable. ...Read more
Loans
Underserved by design: A case study in turning FBAA broker density gaps into growth
Fresh FBAA data confirms broker headcount is rising past 22,000, yet coverage remains uneven — with concentrations in NSW and Victoria and pockets the association identifies as underservedRead more
Loans
The new shadow lender: How the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ is redrawing Australia’s first-home buyer market
Parental capital has become a decisive force in Australia’s housing market, accelerating deposits, lifting bidding power and creating a two‑speed pipeline of first‑home buyers. This isn’t a feel‑good ...Read more
Loans
The effortless edge: How Australian brokers turn retention into a compounding growth engine with AI and specialisation
Australia’s broking market is crowded, digital-first and unforgiving on acquisition costs. The growth story now is retention—engineered through low-effort client experiences, AI-enabled servicing and ...Read more
Loans
State Street: RBA holds rates at 3.6% as hawkish tone emerges
State Street has said the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to hold the cash rate at 3.6 per cent reflects a more hawkish policy bias, signalling that the central bank is likely to keep rates ...Read more
Loans
The effortless edge: How brokers turn low-friction service into high-retention value
Client retention in broking is no longer about squeezing a better rate at renewal. It’s about building an ‘effortless’ experience that anticipates needs, removes friction, and compounds loyalty across ...Read more
Loans
Mortgage broking 2030: from rate-hunting to AI-orchestrated advice
A new industry white paper promises a map for mortgage broking’s next decade. The real story: distribution power is shifting from rate comparison to data-led advice, and firms that industrialise AI ...Read more
