What Really Happens From Fact Find To Formal Loan Approval

From fact find to formal approval, a good broker runs a tight six‑step process: gather your data, pre‑assess, choose a lender, lodge the application, get valuation done, then secure credit sign‑off. If you’re responsive and organised, this can take about two to four weeks, even for more complex deals.

A clear workflow helps you see where your broker is up to at every stage.

Step 1: Fact find – the “tax return” for your loan

The fact find is the detailed questionnaire where you and your broker map your income, assets, debts, living costs and goals.

Treat it like a tax return: complete, accurate and consistent with your documents.

Most brokers will ask for:

• ID – licence, passport, Medicare
• Income – payslips, group certificates, employment contracts, tax returns (self‑employed)
• Debts – credit cards, HECS/HELP, personal loans, leases
• Assets – savings, super, properties, cars, shares
• Living costs – usually grouped against the lender’s HEM benchmark

They’ll also capture your goals:

• Property type and price range
• Target timing (auction date, settlement deadline, refinance window)
• Future plans – renovations, kids, business changes, investing

Your job this week:

1. Fill in the fact find honestly – don’t round down debts or expenses.
2. Send all requested documents in one go, as clear PDFs.
3. Flag anything unusual – bonuses, upcoming maternity leave, business volatility.

This lets the broker test your scenario properly before anyone touches your credit file.

Step 2: Broker pre‑assessment and lender shortlist

Next, the broker runs your scenario through:

• Servicing calculators (with at least a 3% APRA buffer over the actual rate)
• LVR and LMI rules (e.g. 80% vs 90% vs 95% lending)
• Income policies (overtime, commissions, self‑employed add‑backs)
• Credit history tolerance

They’ll usually compare several lenders, balancing:

• Indicative rates and fees (no one can promise the final rate yet)
• Policy fit for your income type
• How fast their credit team and valuers are actually moving

For more complex scenarios — self‑employed, borderline servicing, recent credit issues — this pre‑work is what turns a “probably no” into a safe, well‑structured yes, as covered in more depth in /insights/local-broker-turn-no-into-yes.

Your job this week:

• Clarify priorities: absolute lowest rate, maximum borrowing, fastest approval, or structural flexibility (e.g. multiple splits, offset accounts).
• Confirm what repayments you’re actually comfortable with, not just what a calculator says.

A good broker will recommend 1–2 lenders, explain the trade‑offs and get your sign‑off before moving on.