Broker guide
Bendigo Bank Home Loan Policy for Brokers 2026
A Bendigo Bank loan can involve purchase, construction or refinance checks. Find the current income, security and application requirements.
- Published
- Updated
A Bendigo Bank home loan must fit the borrower’s income, the property and the selected product’s rules. For brokers, the first decision is the application channel: Bendigo’s broker range includes Flex and Easy, while Complete and Express have separate product information and application routes.
Construction makes that distinction consequential. Bendigo’s broker guide excludes construction from Flex and Easy, even though the bank publishes building-loan terms for loans approved through an eligible route.
Identify the Bendigo Loan
Bendigo Bank’s broker home loans are Flex Home Loan and Easy Home Loan, with credit provided by Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited. The Bendigo broker website identifies both products and the credit provider.
Flex has full offset facilities on eligible fixed and variable loans. Easy is the simpler product, with a maximum loan-to-value ratio (LVR) of 80% in the broker guide. LVR is the loan amount divided by the lender’s accepted property value.
The retail Complete Home Loan remains a separately advertised Bendigo product, with redraw and offset features. Express is the bank’s online application route for eligible established-property purchases and refinances.
Keep the product name beside every policy answer in your file. An Adelaide Bank document is not evidence that a Bendigo-branded loan accepts the same borrower or security, even when the legal credit provider is shared.
Read the Borrower’s Income File
Build the income file around what the borrower earns and whether that income can support the proposed repayments. Bendigo’s borrowing-power guidance identifies recent payslips for employed applicants and financial statements for self-employed applicants.
For pay as you go (PAYG) income, reconcile the payslips with salary credits and the declared employment arrangement. Separate base pay from overtime, bonuses or commission so you can ask which components the selected product accepts. A recent job change needs an explanation of continuity, especially when the borrower relies on variable earnings.
For a self-employed borrower, review the business financial statements alongside personal tax records and current trading activity. Explain differences between business profit, drawings and money available for household repayments. Treat this as file preparation, then apply the selected channel’s income-verification rules.
Bendigo’s broker lending guide excludes applicants who have been self-employed for less than one year. It also excludes companies and trusts as borrowers, overseas applicants and non-permanent Australian residents from that broker range. Those conditions must stay attached to Flex and Easy.
Existing commitments need their own reconciliation. Record card limits and balances, home loans and other debts, then mark which will remain after settlement. Bendigo’s supporting checklist distinguishes debts verified through comprehensive credit reporting from debts requiring statements.
Purchase, Refinance and Construction
Purchase, refinance and construction need different evidence because the money reaches its destination differently. Match the approved loan to the transaction before calculating the client’s cash contribution.
| Purpose | Deposit or equity check | Security and funds-to-complete check |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase | Trace the deposit and the borrower’s contribution | Match the contract price, lender valuation, transaction costs and available loan proceeds |
| Refinance | Calculate equity using the accepted value and proposed debt | Reconcile the outgoing payout, new loan costs and any cash contribution |
| Construction | Identify the contribution required before progress funding | Check the approved building budget and whether undrawn funds cover the remaining work |
For purchases, Bendigo’s supporting document checklist requires the sale contract and evidence of funds to complete. Above 90% LVR, it lists three months of savings, deposit or equity history, with evidence for gifted funds where applicable.
For refinances, that checklist requires the last three months of statements or transactions for debts at institutions outside comprehensive credit reporting. It says statements are not required for refinanced debts at participating institutions. Record the payout separately from the balance shown on an earlier statement.
For a hypothetical refinance, a $500,000 loan against a $650,000 accepted value has an LVR of about 76.9%. If the existing payout and transaction costs total $505,000, the borrower still needs $5,000 to complete. Equity alone does not pay that shortfall.
Construction Through an Eligible Product
Flex and Easy exclude construction and land purchases in the broker guide. Express also excludes land-only and under-construction properties. A construction enquiry therefore needs a Bendigo lending specialist to identify an eligible product and route before the broker treats it as a viable option.
Where the loan schedule identifies a building loan, Bendigo’s home-loan terms require approved plans, a signed building contract and relevant permits. The bank also requires builder and insurance documents, plus evidence that the borrower has paid their required contribution.
Progress payments require the builder’s claim and the borrower’s written authority, with an inspection report when the bank requires one. Final funding requires practical completion and occupancy evidence, borrower acceptance, an inspection report and property insurance. Keep these conditions attached to a building loan approved under those terms.
Confirm the Application Route
Accredited brokers use Bendigo’s broker channel for Flex and Easy applications. For a case-dependent income or security question, send the product name and the relevant borrower facts to the bank’s business development manager (BDM) or Partner Assist team.
Retail borrowers can enquire about Complete through a lending specialist or branch. The Express Home Loan application runs online and requires at least 20% deposit or equity, plus funds for fees and charges.
Keep borrowing before a sale in the separate bridging assessment, and handle release of an existing mortgage through the discharge process. Before progressing this application, record the exact product and channel, the accepted income and the cash needed to complete. Resolve any exception against those facts before the borrower commits to the transaction.
