Your weekly wrap of the lender policy changes brokers actually need to know.

There are a few important changes landing over the next week — particularly across self-employed lending, streamlined refinance and servicing.

Here’s what you need to know.

🏦 BANKWEST

Self-Employed Income – NOA Now Required

Effective 29 September 2026, Bankwest will no longer accept an accountant letter in place of a Notice of Assessment (NOA) for self-employed full verification applications.

For the Full Verification Method:

• The customer’s most recent NOA must be provided with the initial submission.
• Accountant letters confirming tax returns have been lodged will no longer be accepted.

Salary Self-Employed – Payslip Method

Bankwest will continue to accept an accountant-prepared letter confirming the company or trust has sufficient profits to meet its business commitments and continue paying the applicant’s declared salary.

Individual Tax Return Method

You will now need to provide:

• Individual Tax Return and NOA, plus
• Accountant-prepared financials or Company Tax Return confirming the company/trust is trading profitably.

Again, accountant letters simply confirming tax returns have been lodged will no longer be accepted.

Rental Appraisals

Rental appraisals will continue to be accepted as income evidence where a full valuation is not required.

They must:

• Be issued by a licensed real estate agent.
• Provide a reasonable rental assessment based on the property type and location.
• Meet any additional credit review requirements.

Where a full valuation has also been obtained, Bankwest will use the lower of the valuation rental assessment or rental appraisal.

🏦 BEYOND BANK

Negative Gearing Policy Update

Following the proposed changes announced in the Federal Budget on 12 May 2026, Beyond Bank has reviewed its policy relating to negative gearing. The changes are effective immediately.

Beyond Bank’s updated servicing calculator is being rolled out this week, so make sure you are using the latest version of the calculator when assessing servicing.

🏦 FIRSTMAC

Government Benefits, Pensions & Maintenance Income

Effective immediately, Firstmac will allow Government Benefits, Pensions and Maintenance Income to be included for servicing where this income represents no more than 50% of the total assessable income of all borrowers.

Rental income and other investment income are excluded when calculating the 50% test.

Eligible income can include:

• Centrelink benefits and allowances
• Age, disability and carer pensions
• Department of Veterans’ Affairs payments and pensions
• Defence Force pensions
• Child support and maintenance payments

Quick Example

✅ Acceptable

PAYG income: $70,000
Centrelink/Pension income: $30,000

Government benefit income represents 30% of total assessable income, so it may be included for servicing.

❌ Not Acceptable

PAYG income: $30,000
Centrelink/Pension income: $40,000

Government benefit income represents 57% of total assessable income, so it cannot be used for servicing. Standard evidence and ongoing-income requirements still apply.

🏦 GRANITE

Easy Refinance – Important Policy Changes

Changes apply from 11:59pm AEST Sunday 4 October 2026.

Companies & Trusts Removed from Standard Easy Refinance

From the cut-off, Granite will no longer accept new Standard Easy Refinance applications where the borrower is:

• A company
• A trust
• An individual acting as trustee of a trust

Standard Easy Refinance will be limited to borrowers applying in their personal capacity.

Self-employed applicants remain eligible provided the application is submitted in the individual borrower’s personal name.

Importantly, Granite will continue to support Company and Trust applications through:

• Commercial Easy Refinance
• SMSF Easy Refinance
• Standard Residential Full Refinance

Pipeline Applications

Eligible Company and Trust Easy Refinance applications lodged before 11:59pm on 4 October 2026 will continue to be assessed under the existing policy.

These applications must settle by 2 January 2027.

Applications that do not settle by that date will need to be resubmitted as a Standard Residential Full Refinance.

Self-Employed Easy Refinance

From 5 October 2026, self-employed individual borrowers using Standard Easy Refinance must meet two additional requirements:

• The existing loan being refinanced must have been held with the current lender for at least 24 months.
• Minimum Equifax Apply One CCR score of 750.

The minimum CCR score for PAYG borrowers remains unchanged at 600.

Applications lodged before the cut-off will be assessed under the existing policy, provided they settle by 2 January 2027.

🏦 ING

Valuations Moving to PropertyHub

Brokers can now order ING valuations through PropertyHub by Cotality.

The new valuation platform is designed to provide a faster and more streamlined valuation ordering process.

🏦 MA MONEY

Expanded AVM Eligibility

MA Money has increased AVM eligibility for eligible Category 1 properties to:

• Up to 80% LVR
• Maximum loan amount of $2 million

This has increased from the previous 75% LVR limit.

Current Valuation Policy

AVM

Category 1: Up to 80% LVR | Maximum loan $2 million
Category 2: Up to 70% LVR | Maximum loan $750,000

Desktop Valuation

Category 1: Up to 80% LVR | Maximum loan $2 million
Category 2: Up to 70% LVR | Maximum loan $750,000

Full Valuation Required For:

• Category 3 postcodes
• Properties outside AVM/Desktop criteria
• Favourable purchases
• Properties over 2 hectares
• High-density units in complexes of more than 40 units
• Vacant land
• Commercial properties

Valuations are ordered through PropertyHub at cost.

🏦 ME BANK

HEM & Servicing Calculator Update

ME has updated its Household Expenditure Measure (HEM) values.

The new values apply to servicing calculations from Tuesday 29 September 2026.

Brokers must use the latest CAT version 1.18 from this date and should delete any previously saved versions.

The updated CAT will be available through your aggregator platform and the ME Broker Portal.

In-Flight Applications

Applications submitted before 29 September will initially continue to be assessed using the existing CAT.

However, if an application has not achieved Unconditional Approval or Approval in Principle (AIP) by the next HEM update, it will be reassessed using the updated 29 September HEM values.

🏦 UBANK

More Transaction & Offset Accounts

Customers can now hold up to 10 transaction accounts, increased from the previous limit of four.

The requirement to maintain at least one Spend account — Individual or Shared — remains unchanged.

Customers can also hold:

• Up to 10 Save accounts
• Up to 10 transaction accounts
• Up to 20 eligible offset accounts linked to their home loan

A handy enhancement for clients who like separating their savings, bills and spending into different buckets.

🏦 ZEUS

BOLT Streamlined Refi – Major Policy Changes

Changes apply from 11:59pm AEST Sunday 4 October 2026.

Companies & Trusts Removed

New Zeus BOLT applications will no longer be accepted where the borrower is:

• A company
• A trust
• An individual acting as trustee of a trust

Applications must instead be submitted by individuals applying in their personal capacity.

Self-employed applicants remain eligible where the application is submitted in the borrower’s personal name.

Pipeline Applications

Company and Trust applications lodged before the cut-off will continue to be assessed under the current policy and must settle by 2 January 2027.

Self-Employed Borrowers

From 5 October 2026, self-employed individual borrowers using Zeus BOLT must meet the following:

• Existing loan being refinanced must have been held with the current lender for at least 24 months.
• Minimum Equifax Apply One CCR score of 750.

The minimum score for PAYG borrowers remains unchanged at 600.

Applications lodged before the cut-off will continue under existing policy provided they settle by 2 January 2027.

Applications that do not meet the new requirements from 5 October should instead be submitted as a Zeus Own application.

🎓 WEBINARS & TRAINING

Bankwest – The Bankwest Edge

📅 Wednesday 4 November | 12:00pm–1:00pm AEST

Bankwest will cover broker portal enhancements, policy and process updates, practical tips and a live Q&A.

👉 Register here

MA Money – Navigating Expat & Non-Resident Loans

📅 Wednesday 30 September | 12:00pm–1:00pm AEST
🎓 1 CPD Point

A practical session covering expat and non-resident lending, suitable client scenarios, key policy considerations and MA Money’s latest enhancements.

👉 Register here

NAB – Winning with NAB: Your Partner for Every Stage

📅 Wednesday 14 October | 2:00pm–3:00pm AEST

NAB will cover:

• Self-employed lending
• Company and trust lending
• Investor opportunities
• Premier Banking
• Application quality and faster “time to yes”
• Specialist support available to brokers

👉 Register here

Thinktank by LMG – Budget Insights & Opportunities

📅 Tuesday 13 October | 1:00pm–2:00pm AEST

Joel Harrison and Ranei Alam will unpack market trends, opportunities arising from the Federal Budget and practical ways brokers can expand their commercial lending conversations.

👉 Register here

🎓 KATH’S CREDIT COACHING

40-Year Loan Terms — Great for Borrowing Capacity… But Know the Fine Print

We now have 10+ lenders inside TBB offering loan terms beyond 35 years, including options up to 40 years.

These can be a great tool for borrowing capacity and repayment flexibility — but the policy can vary significantly between lenders.

Key things to check:

• Age limits: Many lenders restrict eligibility based on borrower age, with some capping entry age at around 40.

• FHB only? Some lenders reserve extended terms for First Home Buyers, while others are more flexible.

• Servicing term: Some lenders assess servicing over 30 years, while others use the actual 40-year term — this can materially impact borrowing capacity.

• Loan purpose: Some allow owner-occupied only; others may also allow investment.

• LVR: Policies range from around 80% to 97% LVR, with LMI or pricing loadings applying in some cases.

• Repayment type: Some require P&I, while others may allow IO.

• Extra conditions: Exit strategies, postcode/security restrictions, renovation limits, clawbacks and pricing loadings may apply.

💡 Kath’s Feedback

A 40-year term can be a brilliant structuring option — but don’t assume every 40-year product works the same way.

Check the borrower, purpose, servicing treatment, LVR and extra conditions before relying on it.

👉 Search “40 Year Loan Terms” inside TBB to compare lender policy.

💡 KATH’S QUICK TAKE

The one to watch this week is streamlined refinance.

Both Granite Easy Refinance and Zeus BOLT tighten considerably from 5 October, particularly for self-employed borrowers — with the new 24-month existing lender requirement and minimum 750 CCR score.

And if you have a Company or Trust borrower sitting in the pipeline for either streamlined product, keep an eye on those cut-off dates.

Also worth flagging with your self-employed Bankwest clients: from 29 September, an accountant letter confirming tax returns have been lodged is no longer enough. Get that NOA upfront and save yourself the inevitable “one more document” email later. 😬

That’s it for this week — see you next Monday.