Australian Finance Group (ASX:AFG): How Mortgage Brokers Are Capturing a Growing Share of Australia's Home Loan Market in 2026

Quick answer: Australian Finance Group (ASX:AFG) is one of Australia's largest mortgage aggregators, and its broker network is writing an increasing share of all new home loans settled in the country. For borrowers, this growth reflects a broader shift away from walking straight into a bank — and towards using a broker to compare hundreds of loan products across dozens of lenders.

Mortgage brokers now write more than 70% of all new home loans in Australia — a figure that has climbed steadily over the past decade and shows no sign of reversing. At the centre of that structural shift sits Australian Finance Group (ASX:AFG), one of the country's biggest mortgage aggregators — a company that sits between thousands of individual brokers and the lenders whose products those brokers recommend.

AFG's recent earnings momentum is therefore not just a stock story. It's a window into how Australians are choosing to borrow money, who they trust to guide that decision, and what the rising dominance of the broker channel means for competition, pricing, and consumer outcomes in the home loan market.

What Does Australian Finance Group Actually Do?

Australian Finance Group is a mortgage aggregator, which means it is not a bank and does not lend money itself. Instead, it provides infrastructure, technology, compliance support, and access to a wide panel of lenders to thousands of individual mortgage brokers across Australia.

Think of it as a B2B (business-to-business) platform. A mortgage broker joins AFG's network, gains access to loan products from banks, credit unions, and non-bank lenders on AFG's panel, uses AFG's software to compare and submit applications, and in return pays AFG a portion of the trail commissions they earn when loans are settled.

AFG also operates its own white-label lending products under the AFG Home Loans brand, which adds a direct revenue stream beyond pure aggregation. When a broker on AFG's platform places a borrower into an AFG-branded product, the company earns both the aggregation margin and the lending margin — a meaningfully higher return per loan settled.

As of mid-2026, AFG's broker network writes billions of dollars of residential and commercial loans annually, giving the company one of the largest windows into real-time mortgage flow data in Australia.

Why Broker Market Share Keeps Growing

The mortgage broker channel's rise to 70%+ market share is not an accident — it reflects several structural forces that have compounded over many years.

Complexity of the product landscape

The Australian home loan market is extraordinarily complex. There are more than 100 lenders offering thousands of individual loan products. Interest rates, fee structures, LVR (loan-to-value ratio) tiers, offset account features, redraw conditions, and serviceability assessments all vary significantly from lender to lender. Most borrowers simply do not have the time, expertise, or access to compare this landscape themselves.

A mortgage broker with access to a wide lender panel can do in hours what would take a borrower weeks — and in many cases, identify a more competitive rate or a lender whose serviceability criteria better suit the borrower's specific circumstances.

The Royal Commission's unexpected outcome

The 2018–2019 Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Financial Services and Superannuation Industry initially looked like an existential threat to mortgage brokers. Proposals to change broker remuneration to a fee-for-service model would have fundamentally altered the economics of broking. Ultimately, those changes did not proceed in the form initially proposed, and the resulting reforms — clearer disclosure of commissions, best interests duty obligations for brokers — actually strengthened consumer trust in the channel over time.

Best interests duty

Since January 2021, mortgage brokers have been legally required to act in the best interests of their clients — a standard that goes further than the responsible lending obligations that apply to bank staff. This has reinforced public confidence that a broker's recommendation is, at least in principle, structured around the borrower's needs rather than the lender's preference.

Rate cycle behaviour

The aggressive Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) rate-hiking cycle that began in May 2022 and continued through to late 2023 drove a massive wave of refinancing as borrowers scrambled to secure better deals. Brokers were central to navigating that period — comparing fixed and variable options, identifying cashback offers, and helping borrowers understand whether switching lenders made financial sense. That experience cemented brokers as the natural first port of call for many Australians when their mortgage is up for review.

The AFG Business Model in More Detail

Understanding how AFG makes money helps explain why earnings momentum builds when market share grows.

Aggregation revenue

AFG earns trail commissions on every loan that sits on its books through broker-submitted settlements. Trail commissions are ongoing payments from lenders, calculated as a percentage of the outstanding loan balance, typically paid monthly. As long as the loan remains active and the borrower doesn't refinance away, AFG continues to earn on that loan. A growing loan book — more settlements without a proportional increase in discharges (loan repayments or refinancing away) — therefore has a compounding effect on revenue.

AFG Home Loans (white-label lending)

The proprietary AFG Home Loans product range is a higher-margin revenue stream. AFG effectively funds these loans through a warehouse facility and securitisation program, meaning it acts more like a lender in this part of the business. The net interest margin (NIM — the difference between what it costs AFG to fund the loan and what it charges the borrower) flows directly to AFG's bottom line. As the mix of AFG-branded loans rises within total settlements, margin per settlement increases.

Software and technology fees

AFG charges brokers fees for using its technology platforms — loan comparison tools, CRM systems, compliance workflows, and digital lodgement infrastructure. As these platforms become more embedded in how brokers run their businesses, switching costs rise and the fee revenue becomes predictable.

What Rising Broker Market Share Means for Borrowers

For someone sitting at home wondering whether to walk into a branch or call a broker, the macro story of AFG's market share growth is actually quite relevant.

Access to a wider panel

A broker at an AFG-affiliated firm can typically access dozens of lenders — big four banks, second-tier banks like Macquarie and ING, credit unions, and non-bank lenders. A customer walking directly into a CBA branch will only see CBA's products. The breadth of comparison available through a broker is genuinely difficult to replicate on your own unless you are willing to apply to multiple lenders sequentially (which creates hard enquiry records on your credit file and takes significant time).

Serviceability differences matter

One of the least-understood benefits of using a broker in a complex credit environment is access to lenders with different serviceability calculators. If one lender's assessment rate or expense methodology makes your loan application unworkable, a well-connected broker can often identify another lender whose model suits your income structure, employment type, or expense profile. This is especially relevant for self-employed borrowers, contractors, or anyone with a non-standard income stream.

Broker remuneration transparency

Since 2021, brokers are required to disclose upfront and trail commissions to borrowers. This means you can see exactly what your broker is being paid and by whom — and ask directly whether a recommended product would earn more commission than an alternative. The disclosure regime has made the channel more transparent than it was a decade ago.

If you want to understand what a home loan might actually cost you at different interest rates and loan sizes, the Mortgage Calculator on Dolaro is a practical starting point before you speak to a broker or a bank.

The Competitive Landscape for Mortgage Aggregators

AFG operates in a concentrated market. Its main aggregator competitors include Mortgage Choice (owned by REA Group), Connective, PLAN Australia (part of the Liberty Group), and Finsure. Each competes for broker affiliations — the more brokers on your platform, the more loans flow through your system, the larger the trailing book, and the stronger the economics.

The aggregator that can offer brokers the best combination of lender panel breadth, technology quality, compliance support, training, and commercial terms will attract and retain the most productive brokers. AFG has historically competed on the strength of its panel and its technology investment.

One dynamic worth noting: vertical integration is increasing across the industry. REA Group's ownership of Mortgage Choice gives it a direct pipeline from property listings to mortgage origination. AFG's own lending products serve a similar integrating purpose — capturing more of the value chain from broker introduction through to loan funding.

The Role of Refinancing in AFG's Flow Numbers

Australia went through one of its most intense refinancing periods in history between 2022 and 2024, as the RBA's 13 consecutive rate rises pushed millions of borrowers off cheap pandemic-era fixed rates onto materially higher variable rates. Many of those borrowers — particularly the so-called "mortgage cliff" cohort who had fixed rates expiring — turned to brokers to help them navigate their options.

Even as the RBA began cutting the cash rate in 2025 and into 2026, refinancing activity has remained elevated. Borrowers who held off switching during the peak uncertainty period are now reassessing, and a falling rate environment creates its own incentive to review whether a better deal is available.

This sustained refinancing activity is one reason AFG's settlement flows have remained strong even as new housing construction and owner-occupier purchase volumes have been constrained by affordability challenges.

Note: A higher rate of refinancing (borrowers switching lenders) actually creates a form of revenue "churn" in the aggregator model — existing trailing commissions end when a loan discharges, and new trail revenue begins on the replacement loan. This is why net lodgement growth (new settlements minus discharges) is the most important operational metric for aggregators, not gross settlement volume alone.

Affordability, Housing Supply, and the Long-Term Outlook

The longer-term volume opportunity for mortgage brokers — and by extension for AFG — is tied to the trajectory of Australia's housing market. That market faces a genuine tension.

On the demand side, Australia's population growth remains among the highest in the OECD, driven by strong net overseas migration. New households forming need somewhere to live, and many will eventually need a mortgage.

On the supply side, Australia is not building enough homes. The federal government's target of 1.2 million new homes by 2029 has been broadly acknowledged as ambitious — land release, planning approvals, construction sector capacity, and trades availability all constrain the pace at which new dwellings can be delivered.

The result of strong demand colliding with constrained supply has been persistently high dwelling prices in most major capitals, which in turn creates higher average loan sizes. A larger average loan means higher absolute commission values per settlement — which benefits aggregators even if the total number of transactions stays flat.

For first home buyers navigating this market, tools like the Borrowing Power Calculator and the Stamp Duty Calculator can help calibrate what a purchase might actually cost and what borrowing capacity looks like at different income levels before entering a conversation with a broker.

What Borrowers Should Actually Do With This Information

Understanding that broker market share is growing and that companies like AFG sit at the centre of that market is useful context — but it doesn't directly change what you should do when you're looking for a home loan.

Here are the practical takeaways:

1. Using a broker is genuinely useful for most borrowers. The product landscape is too complex for most people to navigate efficiently on their own. A broker with access to a wide lender panel can find competitive rates and identify lenders whose serviceability models suit your situation. The mandatory best interests duty means there is at least a legal obligation for the broker to act in your favour.

2. Commission structures still matter — ask about them. Despite the disclosure regime, some brokers do disproportionately place clients into products that generate higher trail commissions or upfront fees. Ask your broker to show you the commission comparison across the products they're recommending. Most reputable brokers will do this without hesitation.

3. Don't assume the broker's recommendation is the cheapest option available. A broker's panel includes lenders they have agreements with — it does not include every lender in Australia. Some online lenders and direct-to-consumer offerings may not appear on any aggregator's panel. Do your own market check before committing.

4. Understand the full cost of switching. Refinancing has genuine costs — application fees, valuation fees, potential break costs if you're leaving a fixed rate, and ongoing fee structures of the new loan. Model the full picture, not just the interest rate headline. The Mortgage Calculator lets you compare total repayment costs across different rate and term scenarios.

5. Your borrowing power changes with the rate environment. As the RBA adjusts the cash rate, lenders update their assessment rates — the floor rate they use to stress-test your ability to repay. A falling cash rate generally improves serviceability assessments and increases the loan amount you qualify for. A rising rate environment does the opposite.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Australian Finance Group (AFG) and what does it do?

AFG is one of Australia's largest mortgage aggregators. It provides infrastructure, technology, and lender access to thousands of independent mortgage brokers across Australia. It earns revenue from broker trail commissions and operates its own branded lending products under the AFG Home Loans range.

Is AFG a bank or a lender?

No. AFG itself does not take deposits. Its core business is aggregation — connecting brokers to lenders rather than lending directly. However, through its AFG Home Loans division, it does originate and fund loans via warehouse facilities and securitisation, which makes that specific part of the business function more like a non-bank lender.

Why do over 70% of Australians use a mortgage broker?

The main reasons are the complexity of the Australian lending market (too many products and lenders to easily compare directly), the legal best interests duty that brokers must follow, and the convenience of having one application process compared against multiple lenders rather than applying to each bank individually.

Does using a mortgage broker cost the borrower anything?

In the vast majority of cases, using a mortgage broker does not cost the borrower a direct fee. Brokers are compensated through upfront and trail commissions paid by the lender. However, those costs are ultimately embedded in the lender's cost base — so it is worth understanding the commission structure and asking your broker to disclose what each recommendation earns them.

How does AFG's growth affect the competition between banks and non-bank lenders?

AFG's growing market share tends to benefit smaller and non-bank lenders, because brokers give those lenders distribution they could not otherwise achieve against the big four banks' branch networks. A borrower walking into a branch will only see that bank's products; a broker can introduce them to Macquarie, ING, Athena, Pepper Money, or any other lender on the panel. This is one reason non-bank lenders have grown their market share significantly over the past decade.

What is a mortgage aggregator's "trailing book"?

The trailing book refers to the total outstanding loan balances across all loans settled through AFG's broker network that are still active and generating ongoing trail commission income. A larger trailing book with low discharge (loan repayment or switching away) rates produces a compounding stream of monthly revenue for AFG, independent of new settlement volumes.

Can I see what my borrowing capacity is before speaking to a broker?

Yes. Using an online tool like the Borrowing Power Calculator on Dolaro gives you a useful indicative figure based on your income, expenses, and existing debts. Bear in mind that actual lender assessments use their own proprietary serviceability calculators, so a broker conversation will give you a more precise answer for specific lenders.

Related Calculators and Guides

Mortgage Calculator — model repayments across different loan sizes, rates, and terms
Borrowing Power Calculator — estimate how much you can borrow based on your income and expenses
Stamp Duty Calculator — calculate stamp duty costs for any Australian state or territory
Rent vs Buy Calculator — compare the long-term financial outcomes of renting versus buying
Usable Equity Calculator — find out how much equity in your current property you can access for a new purchase

Interest rates and home loan market conditions are current as at August 2026 and change regularly — always verify the current figure before acting.

This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial, tax or legal advice. Individual circumstances vary. Consult a registered tax agent or licensed financial adviser before making decisions based on this information.