Stress-free home loans for the self-employed

Often the big banks make self-employed workers jump through extra hoops to get a home loan, or simply classify them as too high-risk. However, at Pepper Money, we can help those who have a non-standard income – even those with just 6 months ABN or GST registration.

Depending on the level of documentation that can be provided, self-employed borrowers commonly fall into two buckets; full doc and alt doc.

There are two types of income documentation options available for self-employed borrowers; full documentation (Full Doc) or alternative documentation (Alt Doc).    

For Full Doc: 

• One year's tax return and One year's tax assessment notice 

Or

One year’s financial statements executed by a registered tax agent or accountant, and last month of business bank statements.

For Alt Doc: 
• Evidence of ABN registration for 6 months

• Evidence of GST registration for 6 months

• Declaration of financial position plus one of the   following: 6 months business bank statements (inclusive of the last 1 month), 6 months business activity statements (BAS) or Pepper Money accountant's letter


We also consider a range of income types for the self-employed including:

• Net profit before tax

• Director wages/salaries

• Addback of Depreciation 

• Addback of Interest on debts being refinanced 

• Addback of Superannuation contribution in excess of 9.5% 

• Interest & Dividend income

Note: All applications are subject to our credit assessment and loan suitability criteria. If you have any questions, give us a call on 137 377.

If you work for yourself or fall under the category of ‘self-employed’, applying for a home loan can be quite a challenge even with regular income. Unfortunately, many lenders perceive self-employed people as high-risk borrowers.

But this does not necessarily mean you cannot qualify for a home loan. It just means you might need to provide a little extra documentation and look beyond the big banks for a lending solution. Here are some tips and tricks to get your loan application approved:

Home loan tips for self-employed

On some of our loans, we offer finance up to 95% of the purchase price, meaning you can start to look at buying a house once you've saved at least 5% of the purchase price. The deposit amount may also depend on the property and area you’re looking at purchasing.

Remember, there can be extra costs involved when buying a house. You’ll need to cover government and legal fees, which can’t be added to your home loan balance.

The interest rate offered, and fees and charges will depend on our assessment of a number of factors at the time of application including:

• The size of your deposit
• Nature of the security property
• Loan to value ratio (LVR)
• Your income
• Credit history
• Any assets you own
• Any liabilities or credit obligations
• Chosen repayment type – paying off interest-only, or principal and interest
• The purpose of the loan – if it’s for an owner-occupier or investment property

To get an indicative interest rate speak you can start by using our online borrowing power calculator, or speak to one of our Lending Specialists on 137 377.

Certain Pepper Money fees can be added to your loan balance, while others will need to be paid upfront – fees include establishments or application fees, and risk or mortgage insurance fees. Other smaller fees will be added to your loan each month. 

View a summary of our home loan fees.   

You’ll also need to pay solicitor fees along with local and state government taxes and levies. These can’t be added to your loan balance and are usually paid upon settlement.

Your Pepper Money Home Loan Journey can take up to six weeks – this is the typical timeframe for a home purchase, however the process may be quicker if all the necessary documentation is provided sooner. 

Delays in decisions are often caused by incorrect or missing documentation. 

Learn more about Pepper Money Home Loan application process or for more information speak to a Lending Specialist on 137 377.

Our home loan borrowing capacity calculator asks a few personal and financial questions to calculate an estimate of how much you may be able to borrow with Pepper Money. After finding out how much you could potentially borrow, you can then either speak to a lending specialist about your situation, or continue on to get an indicative interest rate online.

See how much I can borrow

We’re one of Australia's leading non-bank lenders! 

We were established in 2000 to help Australians achieve their financial dreams through providing flexible financial solutions that factor in the ups and downs of real life. Since then, we’ve become one of the largest, most trusted, and award-winning non-bank lenders in Australia and New Zealand.