Macquarie Bank Home Loan Review

This Macquarie Bank home loan review is written from files I actually lodge. Macquarie is a strong prime lender if you're clean, well-documented, have a real deposit and don't need a branch. It's a poor fit for thin credit files, recent self-employment or unusual security. If that second description sounds like you, a lender like Pepper Money usually gets a better answer.

Three profiles get the best of Macquarie. PAYG professionals and dual-income households with clean credit and a 20% deposit, where servicing is straightforward and pricing sharpens under 80% LVR. Property investors wanting sharp servicing across multiple splits, with offset visible on each account. And borrowers who are happy doing the whole thing digitally, from application through to signing and settlement, without walking into a branch.

Four things stand out when I lodge with them.

Digital assessment is fast from a complete file. Documents move through their system without the back-and-forth I get from some majors. The app and online banking are the best in the market I deal with, particularly for offset account visibility and redraw mechanics. The Offset Home Loan allows up to 10 offset accounts against a single loan, which is genuinely useful for households running separate buckets. Broker-submitted applications go through Macquarie’s central credit team rather than a retail branch. Macquarie also accepts eligible applications directly online. 

No branches. If you want to sit across a desk from your lender, this is a dealbreaker and no amount of app polish fixes it.

The appetite tightens quickly outside their preferred profile. I wouldn't put a first home buyer with a 5% deposit and casual income here. They'll find a home with a lender who actually wants that file. Recent self-employed income, contract work with gaps, or heavy add-backs get treated cautiously and often need a second lender in reserve. They're also conservative on some postcodes, small-floorplan units, high-density towers and rural security. Complicated files burn time here that they wouldn't burn elsewhere.

Macquarie assesses serviceability using the required 3 percentage point buffer above the applicable loan rate. PAYG income with two payslips and a recent group certificate assesses cleanly. Standard self-employed applications generally require two years of personal and business tax documents. Eligible professionals may qualify using one year of documentation, subject to Macquarie’s profession, trading-history and LVR requirements. Add-backs are accepted but scrutinised.

Pricing changes across LVR bands, with sharper rates generally available at or below 80% LVR. Current policy allows eligible owner-occupied principal-and-interest purchases up to 95% LVR, including a capitalised low deposit fee. Investor principal-and-interest purchases and refinances can reach 90%, while interest-only lending is generally capped at 80%. 

Valuations lean on AVM and desktop where the security and LVR support it, which speeds things up. A full valuation triggers on higher LVRs, larger loans or non-standard property.

From a complete, well-packaged file I see conditional approval inside a few business days. New loans run from $150,000 to $10 million, terms 5 to 30 years. The Basic Home Loan supports up to 6 loan accounts. The Offset allows up to 6 at settlement and unlimited afterwards.

The Macquarie discharge authority form is on their website and needs signing by all borrowers on the loan. Macquarie says a discharge typically takes up to 21 days to finalise. On discharge day, title amendments can take up to 10 business days and the loan account can take up to 48 hours to close once funds are received.

If you're on a fixed rate, ask for a break cost quote before you sign anything. Line up your new lender's unconditional approval and a settlement date first, then lodge the discharge. Doing it the other way around costs weeks. Start with the refinance process and work backwards from settlement.