Latest Assetline settlement data highlights clear shift in broker behaviour
New settlement data from prominent non-bank lender Assetline Capital points to an emerging shift among mortgage brokers, who are increasingly favouring long-term certainty over short-term fixed solutions.
In figures shared with MPA, Assetline reported a 140% year-on-year increase in settled volumes in Horizon Mortgages – the group’s long-term, 30-year-plus mortgage product suite – in the fourth quarter of its 2025 financial year.
The strongest growth was seen in self-managed super funds (SMSFs), alt-doc lending and residential investment lending products.
This suggests that mortgage brokers are repositioning how they structure residential deals, pivoting away from short-term fixes and towards longer-term solutions as refinance fatigue, serviceability pressures and tightening bank policies reshape what is viable in the current market.
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For Royden D’Vaz (pictured), Assetline’s general manager – distribution and partnerships, the exceptional year-on-year growth in Horizon Mortgages also speaks to the preferences among brokers for the flexibility provided by the non-bank lender segment.
“Brokers are becoming far more deliberate about who they place deals with,” said D’Vaz. “In SMSF, alt doc and investment scenarios especially, brokers don’t just need competitive pricing – they need confidence that the deal will get approved, settle as structured, and hold over the long term.
“Our growth in Horizon settlements reflects brokers actively choosing certainty over complexity where a long-term structure is the right solution.”
Survey data further shows that brokers look well beyond price when choosing which lenders to write loans with.
In MPA’s 2025 Brokers on Non-Banks report, accessible business development management (BDM) support was voted as the number-one priority among brokers, followed by flexible, transparent credit policy.
The survey showed that brokers are turning to non-banks when their client needs a different pathway – alt- or low-doc deals, self-employed borrowers, credit-impaired clients, SME borrowers and SMSF structures.
They value lenders that look outside the box, take a broader view than the credit score and can deliver higher borrowing capacity with pragmatic, case-by-case assessments. Speed and reliability of turnaround times were also ranked as a higher importance than interest rates.
To accommodate these demands, Assetline’s Horizon Mortgages suite provides 30-year loan terms across prime, near-prime and specialist borrower profiles.
According to Arthur Karvelas, State Manager (Victoria) at Assetline Capital, that consistency is resonating with brokers in the field.
“Brokers continue to use short-term lending solutions where timing and transition require it,” Karvelas said. “But increasingly, they’re coming to Assetline when they want clarity on which structure genuinely fits the client’s longer-term position.
“Our credit team engages early, decisions are clear, and policy doesn’t shift mid-deal. That reliability matters – particularly for investors and SMSF clients who want a structure they won’t need to revisit every couple of years.”
According to Assetline, demand for Horizon Mortgages has been strongest where brokers are trying to balance affordability today with resilience over time – particularly among portfolio investors, self-employed borrowers and SMSF trustees looking for structures that can withstand further serviceability changes.
“Our focus is on being the lender brokers trust to execute – not just approve – and on supporting brokers with the right solution at the right time, whether that’s short-term, long-term, or something in between,” added D’Vaz.
