Investor flows find new channels with broker help
Publication Date: Wednesday, 8 April 2026
This article originally appeared in Australian Broker.
Investor lending is up, regulations are tightening, and deals are getting more complex. Here’s what brokers need to know to stay ahead
WATER FINDS its own level – and so does capital. As banks dam up certain channels with tighter debt-to-income (DTI) ratio rules, money doesn’t stop flowing; it finds new routes. Non-bank lenders are increasingly the path of least resistance for investors who know exactly where they want to go.
The investors following these channels have moved on from the paradigms of five years ago. The speculative punt on a house in a growth suburb, financed with a vanilla mortgage from a major bank, is giving way to something more considered: layered income structures, company and trust borrowers, self-managed super funds and multi-property portfolios that require lenders willing to look at the full picture rather than a single metric.
For mortgage brokers, this is both an opportunity and a challenge. Investor lending volumes rose 32% year-on-year in the December 2025 quarter, according to ABS lending indicators, and while falling interest rates drove some of the earlier surge, the new DTI cap announced in November last year was hardly a surprise. APRA had been signalling its intentions to industry since July 2025, and the lending jumps in the September and December quarters almost certainly reflect informed investors and brokers moving quickly ahead of a regulatory tightening they could see coming.
The DTI effect
The big structural change for investor lending landed on 1 February 2026. From that date, lenders supervised by APRA can issue no more than 20% of new loans to borrowers with a DTI ratio of six times or more, meaning total debt exceeding six times their gross annual income. For highly leveraged investors, even those with strong repayment capacity, this means the doors at major banks are effectively narrower.
“The rule doesn’t reduce investor demand on its own, but it reshapes the lending environment, making serviceability and portfolio structure more important than ever,” says Barry Saoud, chief executive for mortgages and commercial at Pepper Money. “More investor clients may find they’re reaching a limit with traditional lenders.”
That limit is already being felt. Saoud says brokers are increasingly encountering clients with legitimate investment strategies who simply don’t fit inside a bank’s new DTI parameters. The question is what to do with those clients.
“Where banks must pull back, non-bank lenders like Pepper Money can step in,” he says. “Because we’re not bound by the debt-to-income cap, we can offer flexible pathways that help brokers keep deals alive.”
“We’re seeing less speculative behaviour and more focus on cash flow resilience, yield and long-term portfolio sustainability. Many [investors] are actively restructuring, consolidating or rebalancing their portfolios rather than just expanding them” – CHRIS MEAKER, Brighten
For Chris Meaker, head of sales and distribution at Brighten, the policy shift is part of a broader pattern of investors developing a more sophisticated approach to the market.
“Investors are getting a lot more strategic in 2026,” he says. “We’re seeing less speculative behaviour and more focus on cash flow resilience, yield and long-term portfolio sustainability. Many are actively restructuring, consolidating or rebalancing their portfolios rather than just expanding them.”
For refinancing activity overall, non-banks appear to be the major beneficiaries – Equifax data shows a jump in refinancing enquiries at non-banks of 34% in the December quarter versus the same period in 2024. For the big four banks, enquiries were up just 4%. This momentum almost certainly continued in the March quarter as the RBA entered its rate-hiking cycle.
The structure question
If one theme unites the conversation around investor lending in 2026, it’s structure. The clean PAYG borrower buying a single investment property is, increasingly, not the client brokers need to worry about. The growth is coming from clients with finances that don’t fit neatly into a bank’s automated assessment process.
Meaker says this is where the real opportunity lies for brokers willing to put in the work.
“Deal structures are also becoming more complex,” he says. “It’s increasingly common to see trust and company borrowers, SMSF purchases and layered income positions combining PAYG and self-employed earnings. Pain points typically centre around servicing constraints, equity access and lender policy inconsistencies.”
Saoud echoes this, noting that Pepper Money actively encourages brokers to bring scenarios involving mixed or non-traditional income sources, higher gearing strategies, multiple securities and clients who need to restructure or release equity.
“Many banks have stepped back from these types of loans,” he says, referring to borrowers who use companies, trusts or special purpose vehicles. “We welcome them.”
The message for brokers is that if you’re referring these clients elsewhere or letting them fall through the cracks because the structure looks complicated, you are leaving business on the table.
“Complex structuring doesn’t mean higher risk,” says Meaker. “It means better alignment between the borrower and the credit assessor.”
Rates, valuations and the serviceability pinch
Beyond regulation, the rate environment continues to shape how investors are thinking. Fixed rate expiries are still rolling through the market, and many investors who locked in during the low-rate period of 2021 and 2022 are now renegotiating at significantly higher levels. That’s putting pressure on serviceability across existing portfolios, which changes both the risk calculus for lenders and the advice brokers need to be giving.
Saoud says non-banks are better placed than most to handle this environment, precisely because they’ve always had to look beyond a single metric. “We look at the investor’s full portfolio, rental strength and their ability to adjust strategy as conditions change,” he says. “It’s a broader view of risk.”
For Meaker, the serviceability pinch is pushing investors towards structures and products they might not have previously considered. “Investors are more conscious of serviceability buffers, particularly as fixed rate expiries continue to wash through,” he says. “Structurally, that means interest-only terms, sensible rental income treatment and flexible income verification, which can significantly improve outcomes when applied responsibly.”
One area where non-bank lenders see a clear advantage is in the treatment of experienced portfolio investors. Saoud points out that Pepper Money doesn’t apply ‘professional investor’ rate loadings – the additional interest rate charges or fees that some lenders impose on borrowers who hold multiple investment properties.
“Many experienced investors face higher interest rates or extra fees elsewhere simply because they hold multiple properties,” he says. “Pepper Money doesn’t apply these loadings. That keeps rates more competitive for your portfolio clients.”
Where the growth is coming from
Both Saoud and Meaker are watching the same investor segments with interest, and they have a similar view on where growth will come from over the next 12 to 18 months.
SMSF investors are at the top of both lists. “With the superannuation pool expanding, more trustees are confident in incorporating property into their long-term strategy,” says Meaker.
For Saoud, SMSF trustees looking for more flexible lending options are a key growth cohort, alongside investors moving from one or two properties into broader portfolios and yield-focused buyers exploring mixed-use or regional assets.
Self-employed investors are the other major growth segment, or what Meaker calls ‘alt doc’ borrowers, who are increasingly underserved by traditional banks. As banks tighten their income verification requirements, self-employed investors with solid asset positions but irregular income streams are finding non-bank lenders a far more workable path.
Saoud says Pepper Money’s no-LMI offer of up to 90% LVR on prime full-doc home loans is a practical tool brokers can use in these conversations. “Avoiding lenders mortgage insurance can save investors tens of thousands of dollars on a typical purchase,” he says. “Those savings can be reinvested in renovations or future acquisitions, which is a strong message for brokers to bring to their clients.”
What the best brokers are doing differently
Both Saoud and Meaker are unambiguous about what separates brokers who are growing in the investor segment from those who aren’t: strategy, not transactions.
“For brokers, the conversation needs to shift from rate-led to strategy-led,” says Meaker. “Investors want guidance around structure, tax-effective ownership and long-term funding flexibility. Brokers who ask ‘what’s the next move after this purchase?’ are building much stronger long-term relationships.”
Meaker says the top investor-focused brokers he works with share three traits: they understand structure deeply, including trusts, SMSFs and company borrowers; they workshop complex scenarios early with their lender contacts; and they think two transactions ahead. “They’re not transactional, they’re strategic,” he says. “That’s where sustainable growth comes from.”
Saoud points to the importance of lenders that can apply genuine flexibility. “When brokers share the full story with us, we can apply the flexibility non-banks are known for,” he says. “It helps investors act with confidence and move faster.”
For brokers looking to grow in this space, the way forward is to build their knowledge of investor structures, diversify their lender panel beyond the major banks and position themselves as advisers who finds solutions when others can’t.
“Brokers who partner with lenders that understand complex deals and offer flexible solutions will be well placed to grow sustainably,” says Meaker.
In a complex market, that positioning may be the most valuable thing a broker can offer.