People's Choice Home Loan Lending Policy 2026

A People’s Choice home loan application now uses People First Bank’s current lending documents and broker channel. Start with the income evidence, then test the deposit and property against the rules for that channel. Outside the Northern Territory, the bank’s published broker offering is limited to 80% loan-to-value ratio (LVR), excluding lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) waivers, as at October 2026.

Confirm the Lender Name and Broker Channel

People First Bank is the current trading name, and Heritage and People’s Choice Ltd is the legal credit provider. The bank’s Credit Guide, version V4.0-0526, lists Australian Credit Licence 244310. Its broker page, as at October 2026, identifies the 2023 merger of Heritage Bank and People’s Choice Credit Union.

People First Bank has an accredited broker portal, a dedicated broker support team and electronic application processing through Simpology. Keep the People’s Choice name when identifying an existing client’s loan, then record the current credit provider separately. A legacy People’s Choice credit union home loan statement doesn’t establish the rules for a new application.

Put these details together in the file before lodging:

• The product and trading name printed on the current credit guide and application.
• The legal credit provider and Australian credit licence number.
• The policy document’s version or effective date.
• The broker channel and any channel-specific limit or waiver used.

Match those details to the application documents and retain the source with your assessment notes. Record an existing loan’s account number and servicing destination separately from the proposed new loan. Use the People’s Choice broker access guide for portal and accreditation steps, or the discharge guide when refinancing an existing loan away.

Income People’s Choice Will Count

People First Bank’s application requirements guide, as at October 2026, gives an income-document starting point. Evidence of receipt and the amount accepted for servicing are separate questions.

Income	Published evidence starting point	Scenario detail to resolve
Pay as you go (PAYG) employment	Two latest payslips, last financial year’s group certificate or tax return, and last three bank statements	Split base salary from variable earnings
Casual employment	Use the employment evidence above to show earnings received	Ask which employment history and income averaging period apply
Self-employed	Accountant’s details, last two years’ financial statements and a tax return	Identify the entity, financial years and any income adjustments requested
Rental	Bank statements showing rental receipts or a lease	State the rent, ownership share and property costs

The guide doesn’t set a separate casual tenure rule or a rental-income acceptance percentage. Treat the table as preparation for assessment, not confirmation that every dollar will count. For self-employed borrowers, ask which returns the lender needs for the entity and each applicant.

For variable income, send the actual history with a specific question. For example: “The applicant has casual employment with the same employer since January 2025. Attached evidence shows monthly earnings and hours. Which period will you average, what amount can you count and what further evidence do you require?”

Include overtime, bonuses or commissions separately from base pay. For government payments, identify the payment type and expected duration before asking how the lender treats it. A business development manager (BDM) or the broker support team can answer the case-specific question without treating an evidence checklist as an income approval.

Deposit, LVR and Genuine Savings

People First Bank separates its ordinary broker offering from government-guarantee and LMI-waiver pathways. Its Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme page, as at October 2026, limits broker applications outside the Northern Territory to 80% LVR, excluding LMI waivers.

Pathway	Published limit or deposit	What changes the application
Ordinary broker offering outside the Northern Territory	Applications at or below 80% LVR	A smaller deposit needs a permitted waiver or another channel
Medical Professional Package	LMI premium waived up to 90% LVR on loans up to $2 million	Eligible profession, income requirements and product minimum apply
Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme	Minimum 5% deposit, or 2% for eligible single parents or legal guardians	Direct or branch channel, with accredited Northern Territory brokers also included

The medical package covers home and investment loans as at October 2026. Eligible professions include dentists, general practitioners, hospital-employed doctors, medical specialists, optometrists, pharmacists and veterinary practitioners. For joint applicants, only one needs the qualifying profession, but the income requirements still apply.

The bank’s scheme FAQ, as at October 2026, asks for evidence of 5% genuine savings, or 2% for single parents or legal guardians. It separately accepts evidence of funds to complete through a savings plan or family gift. A gift therefore belongs in the contribution breakdown and doesn’t automatically replace the genuine-savings evidence.

For an ordinary application, identify saved funds, gifts and equity separately. Ask how the proposed contribution meets the selected product’s requirements. People First Bank’s construction guide, as at October 2026, describes using home equity as a construction deposit, subject to assessment.

The bank’s LMI fact sheet, version V2.0-0326, identifies the usual LMI threshold above 80% LVR. LMI protects the lender against loss. An LMI threshold doesn’t establish that an ordinary broker application above 80% is available.

In a hypothetical purchase, a $640,000 loan against an accepted $800,000 property value is 80% LVR. The remaining $160,000 contribution covers the price difference only. Allow separately for purchase costs and any amounts added to the loan before treating the file as within the limit.

Servicing and Borrowing Power

A People’s Choice borrowing power estimate is an indication, while People First Bank’s credit assessment decides the lending amount. The bank’s broker tools page, as at October 2026, says calculator results aren’t quotes or pre-qualifications.

People First Bank’s published preparation guidance asks for income and expenses, including housing costs and debt repayments. It also asks for outstanding balances, minimum repayments and credit-card limits. The public guides don’t specify the broker assessment buffer, expense benchmark or percentage applied to card limits.

Prepare the facts needed to test capacity:

• Each applicant’s income, employment history and supporting evidence.
• Household members and dependants, plus actual ongoing living expenses.
• Every liability’s balance, limit, repayment and remaining term.
• The proposed loan amount, purpose, term and repayment type.
• Property expenses, rental receipts and other commitments that continue after settlement.

Show which existing debts will remain and which will be repaid at settlement. If an assumed debt closure changes capacity, include the repayment source and required closure evidence in the application. Record the accepted income and servicing assumptions beside the estimate before quoting it to your client.

For the broader calculation, the loan serviceability guide explains how income and commitments affect capacity. Use People First Bank’s own assessment settings for this file instead of transferring another lender’s assumptions.

Security Limits and Policy Exceptions

People First Bank’s Basic Variable product covers purchasing or refinancing established residential property, as well as building or renovating a home or investment property. Its Target Market Determination is effective 5 May 2026 and includes accredited mortgage brokers as a distribution channel. A target market description doesn’t make every residential security acceptable.

The public document doesn’t give a postcode exclusion list, minimum apartment size or maximum land area. For a rural property, small apartment, unusual title or mixed residential and commercial use, request a property-specific assessment. Those are points to raise with the lender, rather than published People First Bank exclusions.

Supply the address and postcode, property type, title and intended use. Include land area, internal floor area, proposed value and loan amount. Explain any unusual features, valuation concerns or marketability issues, then attach available supporting documents.

For example, a hypothetical exception enquiry dated 3 October 2026 could read:

Please assess a proposed $480,000 owner-occupied loan against a $650,000 regional residential property. The property has a 3-hectare title and no commercial use. The applicants have permanent employment and documented funds for the purchase costs. Attached are the contract, title details and property information. Please confirm whether the security is acceptable, the applicable LVR limit and any valuation or credit conditions. If it falls outside standard policy, please identify whether an exception is available.

That example’s LVR is about 73.85%. It illustrates a question, not a lender approval or an established acreage exception. Retain the dated response and conditions with the file, and obtain a fresh decision if the proposed security or borrower facts change.

Send the enquiry through the bank’s broker support route, brokers@peopleschoice.com.au, or your BDM. Compare another lender’s documented security rules through the lender policy guides if the response doesn’t support the proposed application.