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It comes as some lenders are taking up to 16 days to process lending applications for self-employed Australians, compared to just two business days for PAYG borrowers.
According to broker-built AI platform Accurateli, the issue isn’t borrower creditworthiness, but the complexity of self-employed applications.
It’s a problem that has left brokers shouldering increasing workloads to get deals across the line.
“We’re seeing tax returns that used to be a few pages long now run to 15 plus,” says Ben Callaghan, co-founder of Accurateli. “There are more entities, more income types, more adjustments – and more pressure on brokers to make it all make sense.”
The company said the problem is worsening, with some lenders excluding self-employed borrowers altogether or limiting income verification to “simple self-employed” applicants.
“Right now, lenders only consider basic add-backs like depreciation or interest expenses,” Callaghan explained. “But many miss the most obvious one – personal expenses, like rent, claimed through the business. That should be the first add-back allowed, not the last. The irony is, they skip it because it would make the process even slower.”
Accurateli’s AI platform automates the process by integrating tax returns and key financial data to generate lender-ready income reports in minutes.
“Self-employed borrowers are growing faster than any other segment, yet they’re still the hardest to serve,” said Joel Wyld, co-founder of Accurateli.
“The future of lending has to be fairer and faster for everyone – not just those with a payslip. These are not just abstract ideas. These are real people and real homes where they raise their family.”