Regional Australia Bank Home Loan Lending Policy 2026

A Regional Australia Bank home loan needs a policy check against the actual borrower, income evidence, contribution and property. Start with the residential product, then test whether the client’s facts fit its credit rules. A product being available for investment or construction doesn’t establish that a particular application qualifies.

Use the lender policy guide to compare this assessment with other lenders.

Define the Borrower Scenario

Write the borrower scenario before choosing a policy answer, so the answer applies to the people and transaction you intend to lodge. Regional Australia Bank Ltd is the legal issuer named in its Home Loan target market determination, effective 3 November 2025. The product covers owner-occupied and investment residential lending, subject to credit assessment.

Regional Australia Bank’s July 2026 broker underwriting guide sets standard borrowers as natural persons aged at least 18 who are Australian citizens or permanent residents. Treat the borrower entity and residency as separate questions from employment and income.

Capture these facts in your scenario summary.

• Each applicant’s age, residency and relationship to the other parties, plus who owns the security and who benefits from the loan.
• Purchase, refinance, construction or equity-release purpose, including the intended use of each extra dollar borrowed.
• Owner occupation or investment use, with any planned change after settlement.
• Employment type, start date and each income source you need for repayment capacity.
• Existing loan balances, credit limits, repayments and ongoing household expenses.
• Deposit source, purchase price, requested loan amount and repayment structure.

Keep a published rule separate from a proposed treatment of the client. For example, a published investment product establishes a product option. Your client’s rental estimate, property type and requested loan still need assessment under the relevant rules.

Check Income and Funds

Match each income source to its evidence route before counting it in serviceability, the test of whether the borrower can afford repayments. Regional Australia Bank’s July 2026 broker underwriting guide uses different verification routes for different income types.

Income source	Evidence route in the guide
Permanent, part-time, casual or apprenticeship income	Two permitted evidence types. The latest two payslips and salary credits over the last 60 days are listed options.
Pay as you go (PAYG) contract income	Employment contract plus one permitted income evidence type, with commentary about foreseeable non-renewal.
Self-employed business income	Average financial results across two to three years, verified using at least two listed evidence types. These include entity financials or tax returns and borrower tax returns. Latest annual financials must be no older than 18 months.
Rental income	Rental statements, lease agreement, agent letter or bank-addressed valuation under the applicable rental category.

Use the route for the source of income, even when several sources belong to one borrower. A contractor paid through their own company needs the business structure identified before you select the evidence route. A payslip from that company doesn’t explain the company’s debts or financial position.

Prepare a separate calculation for regular pay and any additional income the application relies on. Link each amount to its supporting document and explain a mismatch between current receipts and historical figures. The loan serviceability guide explains how income and commitments interact across a complete assessment.

Trace the Contribution to Settlement

Reconcile the deposit with the total cash needed for settlement. As at October 2026, Regional Australia Bank’s home loan page discusses conditional low-deposit lending with lenders mortgage insurance (LMI). LMI protects the lender, and a small deposit still needs an eligible loan and enough money for transaction costs.

Build the contribution record from the actual funding sources.

• Savings: match the available balance to account statements and explain large incoming transfers.
• Gift: identify the donor, amount and transfer evidence. Record whether repayment is expected so a family loan isn’t described as a gift.
• Equity: show the existing property value and secured debt, then identify how released funds reach settlement.
• Asset sale or grant: keep the sale evidence or grant eligibility details, including when the funds become available.

Confirm the treatment of each contribution under the chosen loan or guarantee arrangement when that treatment affects eligibility. Keep purchase costs separate from the deposit percentage. The minimum deposit guide explains that funds-to-complete calculation.

Assess Property and Loan Structure

Assess the actual security and requested structure together, because a property restriction can change the loan amount the client can obtain. As at October 2026, Regional Australia Bank’s home loan page shows variable and fixed options, with offset and non-offset choices. Its loan-to-value ratio (LVR) uses the bank’s assessed property value, which can differ from the purchase price.

The Regional Australia Bank Home Loan target market determination, effective 3 November 2025, covers residential purchase, land, construction, refinancing and personal-purpose equity release. It excludes commercial property as security. These product boundaries identify the relevant assessment pathway, while credit eligibility and final approval depend on the application.

The bank’s July 2026 broker guide also differentiates rural lifestyle security by land size and location. Record zoning, acreage and distance from the town boundary for these properties.

Use this sequence for a property check.

1. Identify the address, property type, intended use and any unusual feature that changes marketability.
2. Match the valuation to the security being offered, including all titles and any construction assumptions.
3. Calculate LVR using the proposed secured lending and the bank’s accepted value.
4. Test the requested term and repayment structure against that security category and loan purpose.
5. Record any conditions that must be met before approval or settlement.

Example: A Lower Valuation Changes the Contribution

In this hypothetical purchase, the price is $600,000 and the requested loan is $480,000. The bank accepts a value of $580,000, so the LVR is about 82.76%, not 80%.

If the applicable lending limit for this scenario were 80%, the corresponding loan would be $464,000. That leaves a $16,000 funding difference before transaction costs. This example explains the calculation and assumes an 80% limit for illustration, without assigning that limit to every Regional Australia Bank property.

For interest-only borrowing, record the requested period and the plan for repaying principal afterwards. A product selection or repayment calculator result doesn’t establish approval of that structure for the client.

Record Evidence and Exceptions

Keep a dated record that lets another broker understand which facts support the policy position and which questions still need a lender decision. As at October 2026, Regional Australia Bank’s home loan specialist enquiry page provides an official question and callback route. Its contact page lists 132 067 for general enquiries.

Use your established bank contact for a scenario-specific credit question. If you need the correct contact, ask the home loan specialist or contact centre to direct the enquiry. Ask for the secure document route before sending financial evidence.

The bank instructs customers to keep account and card details out of its public contact form.

A reusable broker record needs these fields.

Record field	What to retain
Scenario	Applicants, loan purpose, occupancy, income types, contribution, property and requested structure
Applicable rule	Document name, version, section and wording that supports the proposed treatment
Dates	Source effective date, date checked and date of any written lender response
Evidence	Document references supporting each material borrower fact and calculation
Open question	Exact departure from the rule, the requested treatment and why it is needed
Lender response	Respondent, response date, conditions and whether the answer requires credit approval

Bulma’s Policy Advisor quotes lender policy wording that you can retain with the file notes. Keep the lender document’s effective date separate from Bulma’s last-update date. A research answer helps prepare the file, while the lender decides the application.

For an exception request, state the ordinary rule and the precise fact that falls outside it. Send a concise scenario summary with the relevant income evidence, contribution trail, liability position and valuation details through the confirmed secure route. Ask what conditions apply and whether the response is a preliminary position or an authorised credit decision.

Before lodging, reconcile the lender’s answer with the application. A response about an owner-occupied property can’t resolve a changed investment scenario, and a response based on an earlier valuation needs reassessment when the value changes. Carry every remaining condition into the submission record.