Refinancing a home loan made easier for you and your clients

Comprehensive credit reporting (CCR) has changed the way lenders view a clients creditworthiness and eligibility for a loan.

It allows lenders to have a more balanced understanding of their credit history - both positive and negative.

At Pepper Money, we recognise that refinancing a home loan requires a significant investment in time and effort for brokers and their clients. That's why we want to make the process of refinancing a home loan more straightforward, so that your clients can get back to real life sooner.

How we’re making the application process easier

Where CCR data is available, we no longer require loan statements for home loans being refinanced. Instead of using loan statements to assess a client's loan repayment history, we rely on the repayment history information (RHI) contained in their credit report. This could save you and your clients time and effort with on average 18 pages less documentation required.

How you can harness the power of CCR

Once you have identified that a Pepper Money Home Loan could be a suitable option for your client, if you have their written consent, then Pepper Product Selector (PPS) can help identify a loan solution and provide an indicative offer and estimated repayments*. Using PPS will give you access to a client's credit score and other bureau data, including RHI. This will not only allow you to have a deeper discussion with them about their situation, but you can also find out what documentation you need to assist them in refinancing their home loan.

Tips to offering an alternative solution

While CCR may make it easier for clients with a good repayment history to get a loan, it may indicate that they may need an alternative lender, if they have past credit issues. If you identify that a Pepper Money product may be suitable for a client when they are expecting a solution from a traditional lender, our 5 Step process can help you position the solution. This process can help navigate the emotional journey of a client's lending experience.

The opportunity for brokers

CCR can provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your value as a trusted broker. It's a great reason to proactively contact your clients and provide them with tips on how they can take early steps to protect their credit score.

Tips to help your clients maintain a healthy credit score

Get to know what's on their credit report

Help them understand behaviours, both positive and negative, that are contributing to their score and how they can address them.

Tell them how they can access their report

64% of clients didn't know they could access their credit report for free^1. By helping them access their credit report, they can familiarise themselves with the information it contains and identify any potential errors.

Encourage your clients to update their details regularly

When a client changes address, they should contact their lender, utility, and credit provider to update their details. This will help them stay on top of their bills and ensure they don't miss a payment.

Understand your client's goals

It's important that your clients only borrow what they need - each time they get a new credit card or take out a personal loan, it may impact their ability to access future credit. By understanding their goals, you're helping them to achieve them now and in the future.

Encourage your clients to set up direct debits

In real life, it’s easy to forget to pay a bill. Automating the payment of bills could be an easy way to ensure payments aren’t missed or late. Encourage your clients to set up direct debits where possible.

For more information on how your clients can protect their credit score, head to www.creditsmart.org.au.

PPS: Find your client's fit

Product Selector enables you to find a home loan option for your client in under five minutes*. Answer a simple set of questions about their situation, and we’ll combine their credit score to provide an indicative offer with estimated repayments, fees and interest rate^. Best yet, it’s free and won’t impact their credit score.

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Non-bank lending making a real life difference.

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