10 Best Questions to Ask a Mortgage Broker in WA

Good brokers love good questions. The first conversation about a home loan should leave you feeling clearer, more confident and a bit excited, not like you sat an exam. So here are the ten questions to ask a mortgage broker in WA. And because we would rather you knew exactly who you are dealing with, here is how we answer every one of them. Bring this list to your first chat with us, or with anyone. Buying your first place in Ellenbrook, refinancing in Busselton, building in Geraldton or investing from a site in the north: these are the questions that get you the right loan from the right lender. With someone you will want to ring again.

Why these are the questions to ask a mortgage broker

We have been writing loans across Western Australia since 2015, from Perth’s northern corridor to the Kimberley. Every one of these questions has been asked across our desk. Several of them line up with ASIC’s Moneysmart guide to using a mortgage broker, which is a good, plain read before any first meeting. The rest are the ones our clients tell us they wish they had asked sooner. Together they cover the things that actually decide how your loan turns out. How wide the comparison is. How solid the recommendation is. Whether the broker knows WA. Whether they will still be in your corner in five years.

1. How many lenders do you compare, and how do you use them?

The panel is where a broker’s value starts. Every lender has its own policy on income, deposits, postcodes and property types. The same file can get a very different answer from one to the next. A wider panel means more chances that one of those policies was written with you in mind.

How we answer it: Pilbara Finance compares across 60+ lenders: the major banks, credit unions, non-bank lenders and specialists. We use all of it. When you sit down with us, we run your situation against that whole panel before we talk about a single product. The options you see are the ones that fit, not the ones that happened to be top of mind.

2. What will you recommend for me, and why?

Of all the questions to ask a mortgage broker, this is the one that matters most, and the one we most enjoy answering. You are not looking for a list. You are looking for someone who will look at your actual circumstances, compare what the market can do for you, and tell you plainly what they would do in your shoes.

How we answer it: we compare the options across the whole panel, we show you the ones that genuinely suit you, and then we give you a solid recommendation based on your circumstances. Not a spreadsheet of sixty products. Two or three real options side by side, in plain English, and a clear “this is the one, and here is why”. Your income, your deposit, your suburb, your plans: the recommendation is built on those, and we stand behind it.

3. Do you know my part of WA?

This one matters more here than almost anywhere in Australia. Lender policy on postcodes ranges from generous in Perth metro to careful in mining towns and selective across the regions. None of it is on a comparison website. A broker who knows the state can tell you in the first minute which lenders are comfortable in your suburb or town. And what changes as your deposit grows.

How we answer it: we work the whole state, across Perth and regional WA. Perth metro, the South West, the Wheatbelt, the Goldfields, the Mid West, the Pilbara and the Kimberley are all familiar ground. We check postcode policy before a file goes anywhere. If you are curious how detailed that gets, our guide on postcode restrictions in WA mining towns is the level we work at.

4. How will you treat my income?

Ask this whatever you earn. The way lenders read income is where most borrowing capacity is found. Overtime and shift loadings. Roster allowances. Bonuses and commissions. Self-employed profit. Director wages and retained earnings. Contractor income. Each is counted in full by some lenders and shaded by others. The broker’s skill is knowing which is which for your particular pay.

How we answer it: we break your income into its parts and map each one to the lenders that treat it best. PAYG with overtime. A 2 and 1 roster. A sole trader on one strong year. A director drawing a modest wage. We have placed all of them, many times. Our guides on how overtime income is assessed and a home loan on one year of tax returns show how much difference the right lender makes.

5. What happens after I say yes, and how long does it take?

Once you are happy with the recommendation, you want to know what comes next and when you will have an answer. A good broker runs the application, chases the lender, keeps you posted, and does not make you guess.

How we answer it: we lodge with the lender we recommended, we manage the whole thing from application to settlement, and you hear from us at every step without having to ask. Timing depends on the lender and the property, and we tell you what to expect up front rather than leaving you watching your phone.

6. Which first home buyer support can I actually get?

If this is your first home, this is the most valuable of the questions to ask a mortgage broker. Western Australia has the most generous first home buyer settings in years, and they moved again in May 2026. Higher stamp duty thresholds. The $10,000 grant on new homes to $800,000. The federal 5 per cent deposit scheme with no income cap. Keystart’s 2 per cent deposit for WA buyers. The right combination can take years off your saving.

How we answer it: we ask about you first, then we tell you which schemes you fit and which ones stack. Our guides on Keystart or a bank for your first WA home and a house and land package loan are the shape of that conversation. It is our favourite one to have.

7. If I want to invest later, how should we set this up now?

Most people buy a first home thinking about the first home. A good broker is quietly thinking about the second property, because the way the first loan is structured decides how easy the next one is. Offset accounts, loan splits, keeping the owner-occupier loan clean and preserving equity are all day-one decisions.

How we answer it: we ask where you want to be in five years before we talk about today’s rate. In WA right now, with Perth values where they are and the 2026 changes to investor tax settings, that forward planning is worth real money. Our guide on buying in Perth from the Pilbara is an example of the two-lane thinking you can expect from us.

8. How do you work around my life?

The most practical of the questions to ask a mortgage broker. Time-poor in Perth, on a roster in the north, running a business in the South West, or juggling kids and a mortgage in Mandurah. The process should bend to you, not the other way round. Electronic signing. Documents by email. Calls when it suits you.

How we answer it: the whole thing runs by phone, video and email, scheduled around your shift, your swing or your school run. We were built for people a long way from the nearest branch, and it turns out everyone prefers it that way. The easiest way to start is a phone call, and we will take it from there.

9. Can you look after more than the home loan?

If you run a business, drive a work ute, or plan to buy equipment or a commercial property, one broker who can handle all of it saves you starting from scratch. Every time. Personal and business lending structured together is where the real efficiencies live.

How we answer it: home loans, refinancing, investment lending, business loans, commercial property, vehicle and equipment finance and private lending all come from the same desk. The broker who did your home loan already knows your whole picture when it is time for the ute, the workshop or the next property.

10. How are you paid, and are you licensed?

Two questions, one answer, and every good broker is glad to be asked. For most home loans the broker is paid by the lender at settlement, not by you. The details are set out in a credit guide you receive before anything is signed. Every legitimate broker operates under an Australian Credit Licence or as an authorised credit representative, which you can verify in minutes on Moneysmart’s professional registers.

How we answer it: Pilbara Finance operates as credit representative 478535 under Mortgage Specialists Pty Ltd, Australian Credit Licence 387025. How we are paid is in our credit guide and we walk you through it at the start. Look us up; we would like you to.

The ten questions to ask a mortgage broker, at a glance

How the capabilities compare

What to bring to the first conversation

Once you have the questions to ask a mortgage broker sorted, the other half is what to bring. You do not need much, and you do not need it perfect. A rough idea of what you earn and how: payslips if you have them, last returns if you are self-employed. What you have saved. What you owe. Where you would like to buy and roughly what you would like to spend. If you are refinancing, your current loan statement. That is enough for us to run the panel and show you real numbers in the first sitting. Everything else we sort out together.

What the questions to ask a mortgage broker have in common

Read them again and you will notice none of them is about the rate. That is deliberate. The rate is the last thing decided and the easiest thing to compare. The questions that matter are about the broker. How far they can reach. How solid their recommendation is. Whether they know where you live and how you earn. Whether they will still be useful when you refinance, invest or buy the ute. Get those right and the rate looks after itself.

Start the conversation

If you are buying, refinancing, investing or sorting any kind of finance in WA, bring these questions to a conversation with Pilbara Finance. You will get a person, not a queue. You will get straight answers about what is possible and how to get there. And you will leave with a clear recommendation built on your circumstances, and the reasons behind it. Give us a call.

FAQs: questions to ask a mortgage broker in WA

How many lenders should a good WA mortgage broker compare?

A strong panel includes 30 lenders or more. Pilbara Finance compares across 60+ lenders including major banks, non-banks, credit unions and specialists, a wider rate and policy comparison than most franchise brokerages offer.

Should I use a local WA broker or an online national broker?

Local knowledge of WA postcode policy, property markets and income types matters. Pilbara Finance combines WA-based experience with a national lender panel, so regional knowledge does not come at the cost of comparison.

What is the difference between a mortgage broker and a bank lender?

A bank lender offers one bank’s products. A broker compares across many lenders and recommends based on your situation. Comparing across 60+ lenders surfaces options you would never find walking into a single branch.

Can a broker help if a bank has already said no?

Yes. A bank decline means that bank’s policy did not fit your situation. A different lender with different policy can give a different answer, and a broker who compares the whole panel knows which one.

Does a mortgage broker cost me anything?

For most home loans the broker is paid by the lender on settlement, not by you. A good broker sets this out in their credit guide before anything is signed.

How do I check a mortgage broker is licensed?

Search the professional registers on Moneysmart for the broker’s name or business. Every legitimate broker holds an Australian Credit Licence or operates as an authorised credit representative under one, and the register shows it in minutes.