Pepper Money breaks down more lending barriers
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A SELF-EMPLOYED couple buying in a regional centre with a smaller deposit. An investor whose borrowing power hasn’t kept pace with prices. A family upsizing where values have quietly outrun old lending assumptions. Until recently, each may have found their options narrower than their circumstances warranted. Pepper Money has taken on broker feedback to update its lending policy to better reflect today’s property market, by lifting loan sizes, widening LVR limits and broadening its definition of an acceptable property across its Prime and Near Prime Clear home loan options.
The changes land at a key time for the broker channel. Property values in cities and regions alike have moved well past the limits many non-bank lenders set years ago. Pepper Money’s expanded policy is designed to close that gap, giving brokers more options for customers who may previously have had fewer choices.
Pepper Money is a leading non-bank lender founded on a mission to help people succeed. For over 25 years, Pepper Money has helped more than 600,000 customers with a wide range of really helpful loan options, including home loans, car loans, novated leases, personal loans, asset finance, commercial real estate and SMSF loans. Operating across Australia and New Zealand, Pepper Money works through trusted broker partners, white label solutions, and direct channels − always guided by the question: “How can we be more helpful?”
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Barry Saoud, Pepper Money
More borrowing power for more customers
“Pepper Money has built its reputation by helping customers who don’t fit the traditional lending mould, and our latest Prime and Near Prime Clear enhancements reinforce that,” says Barry Saoud, chief executive, mortgages and commercial lending at Pepper Money. The update touches how much customers can borrow, at what LVR, and where, rather than adding one standout feature.
“Brokers can now access loan amounts of up to $5 million at 80% LVR and up to $3 million at 95% LVR across category 1 to 4 locations,” Saoud says. Alt doc lending has moved with it. “We’ve also increased alt doc LVRs to 95%, expanded lending across high-density securities and now allow the Lender Protection Fee to be capitalised up to 98% LVR for full doc purchases across our Prime and Near Prime Clear home loan options,” he adds.
The changes launch under “Let’s Go Lender,” Pepper Money’s new broker campaign, and Saoud is clear that the two are meant to be read together. “The campaign brings together the can-do attitude of our people with our continued focus on improving our products, policies and experience,” he says. “These changes are the proof behind that. Larger loans, higher LVRs and broader reach give brokers more options and more momentum to help customers take their next step.” The expanded capability also rolls out across Pepper Money’s white label partnerships.
Regional Australia is no longer the exception
“Today’s borrowers are more diverse than ever, yet many non-bank lenders’ policies have remained anchored to loan size limits, LVR restrictions and postcode-based controls that were designed for a very different market,” Saoud says.
The shift is sharpest outside the capitals. By bringing Categories 3 and 4 in line with Categories 1 and 2, Pepper Money has opened up borrowing power in towns and regional centres previously treated as higher risk by default. “Regional property values have grown strongly over recent years, with many lifestyle and regional centres now recording median values far above historical expectations,” Saoud adds. The practical effect, in his words, is a shift in what brokers can now realistically place. “What was once a difficult client scenario for brokers to place is now well within reach,” he says.
A market under pressure
Pepper Money’s timing follows a run of disruption in the broader lending market. “The lending market is rapidly shifting,” Saoud says. “Early this year, major banks had pulled out of SPV lending, and the recent government changes to CGT and negative gearing have meant broker confidence and businesses have taken a hit.”
Saoud frames the policy expansion as a direct response to that pressure. “With these enhancements, deals that were once overlooked due to being too difficult can now be reconsidered, allowing brokers to find new ways to support customers and grow their business,” he says. He also points to a shift in how brokers themselves are operating, spreading their business across more lenders than before. “As brokers broaden the number of non-bank lenders they work with from 3 to 3.3, the opportunity for lenders is to help brokers solve more customer problems,” Saoud explains. “That’s where flexible policy, consistent credit decisioning and a willingness to look at individual circumstances become increasingly important.”
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“Deals that were once overlooked due to being too difficult can now be reconsidered, allowing brokers to find new ways to support customers and grow their business”
“We’ve always believed there are good customers outside traditional lending boundaries, and that opportunity will only continue to grow over the next five years”
More borrowing power, higher LVRs and broader reach give brokers more ways to help self-employed, investor and regional customers across Pepper Money’s Prime and Near Prime Clear home loan options
Where policy goes from here
Looking ahead, Saoud expects the pace of policy change across the non-bank sector to continue.
His longer view centres on how lending decisions get made rather than individual policy settings.
“Longer term, lending will become increasingly personalised,” Saoud says. “Technology will continue to streamline processes, but brokers will remain critical because customer circumstances are always evolving.” For Pepper Money, he says, that means treating this update as a starting point rather than an endpoint. “We’ve always believed there are good customers outside traditional lending boundaries, and that opportunity will only continue to grow over the next five years.”
Published 24 Aug 2026
Lender Protection Fee can now be capitalised up to 98% LVR for full doc purchases
Source: Pepper Money
Sydney
Brisbane
Perth
Adelaide
Canberra
Melbourne
Hobart
Darwin
$1,282,020
$1,126,149
$1,050,354
$950,703
$890,555
$812,621
$752,398
$634,368
Combined capitals
Combined regional
National
$1,030,973
$771,365
$941,864
Median dwelling values around Australia
Source: MFAA
Pepper Money’s expanded prime lending
Loan amounts up to $5 million at 80% LVR doubling previous lending limits
Loan amounts up to $3 million at 95% LVR, across category 1 to 4 locations tripling previous lending limits in the higher LVRs
Expanded lending across high-density securities
Alt doc at 95% LVR, a market first for non-bank lending
Applies across both Prime and Near Prime Clear home loan options
More property choice, with unit sizes from 30m²
Rolling out across Pepper Money’s white label partnerships
Barry Saoud, Pepper Money
Backing brokers with education, not just policy Policy is one part of Pepper Money’s pitch. The lender has also built out its education program for brokers working through unfamiliar scenarios. “For us, education is about helping brokers and their support teams stay informed, build their knowledge and feel more confident in a wider range of customer scenarios,” Saoud says. The topics brokers are asking about, he notes, tend to cluster around complexity. “A lot of the conversations we’re having today are around areas where brokers want to build confidence, whether that’s self-employed lending, tax debt or more complex ownership structures like SPVs and trust lending.”
The scale of that education push is considerable, according to Saoud. “Over the past year, we’ve delivered 29 education sessions, attracting more than 27,800 registrations across our network of over 24,787 accredited brokers,” he says.
For Saoud, that investment is about turning knowledge into confidence at a broader, team level. “If our education gives a broker or one of their team members the confidence to have that conversation, then we’ve done our job.”