You have a profitable business, a deposit and a property in mind. Then a home loan application turns into a discussion about when your tax returns were lodged.
That is where the lender comparison should start. Before asking which of Pepper Money, Athena or Brighten has the lowest rate, establish which income evidence each would accept for your application. A price attached to a loan you cannot qualify for is not much use.
Flexdoc works with all three lenders. There is no permanent winner between them. The useful choice depends on your records, business history, property and the features you will actually use.
Start with the records you have
If your personal and business financials are complete and current, ask for a full-documentation assessment first. Being self-employed does not automatically mean you need an alternative-documentation loan. Our guide to how self-employed home loans work explains that distinction.
When the latest returns are unfinished, identify what is available instead. That might include lodged BAS, business bank statements and information your accountant can substantiate. Do not choose an income figure first and then look for paperwork to support it. Start with the records and let the proposed lender explain its assessment.
Also separate your business turnover from your income. Money coming through the account still has to meet business costs. The borrowing discussion needs to account for those commitments, rather than treating every customer payment as money available for your mortgage.
Three routes worth checking
Pepper Money offers Full Doc and Alt Doc routes. It is worth investigating when you need a different way to substantiate business income, but ask which documents and business history the proposed product requires. The Pepper Money guide covers the questions to take into that discussion.
Athena makes an important distinction. Its Straight Up and Power Up loans use full-documentation verification. Tailored Lite Doc is a separate route for self-employed borrowers without complete current financials, and its published business-history requirement is at least two years. If you have full records, investigate the standard range; if the records are the obstacle and you meet the history requirement, ask about Tailored. Rates and fees for Tailored are personalised. Our Athena guide explains why the two routes should not be blended into one offer.
Brighten Boss Alt Doc has Prime and Near Prime routes with different business-history requirements. The published minimum active ABN periods are two years for Prime and one year for Near Prime. Both list a borrower income declaration plus one supporting option: an accountant's letter in Brighten's format, six months of BAS or three months of business bank statements. Other criteria, including GST registration where applicable, still matter.
That makes Brighten worth checking if a shorter trading history is the obstacle. It does not mean the shortest-history route will be the cheapest or that every young business qualifies. Use the Brighten guide to distinguish the routes before requesting a quote.
Then compare the whole loan
Once the evidence route is clear, put the quotes on the same footing: the same amount, purpose, repayment type and term. Ask for the interest rate, all upfront and ongoing fees, the cash needed at settlement and the cost of the features you want.
An offset can be useful when you retain personal savings between income payments. It earns its place only if the likely interest saving justifies any extra cost. Redraw access, extra repayments and the ability to change products later also deserve questions. Do not assume a feature advertised on one product applies to another product from the same lender.
Nor should a possible future move to a cheaper loan carry today's decision. Ask what conditions would have to change, what evidence would be needed and whether fees would apply. Judge the initial loan on terms you can live with if that move takes longer than hoped.
Before your next discussion, gather your available financials, ABN start date, current debts, deposit and proposed property details. Ask Flexdoc to identify the evidence route first, then obtain comparable written quotes for the viable options. That gives you a decision about an actual loan, rather than a contest between three brand names.