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This audio version covers: State of Broking 2026, Part 3 of 4: The 50-Plus Share Fell to 32.0%. Under-31s Are Still Just 8.2% of Brokers
State of Broking 2026 • Part 3 of 4
The Workforce Is Getting Younger. Slowly.
The MFAA’s new report shows the age mix tilting toward brokers in their thirties and forties, a small lift in the youngest cohorts, and a workforce that is still about 73% male.
The age shift, 2024 to 2025
Share of brokers in a matched six-aggregator sample.
Three numbers on renewal
The takeaway
The experienced core is still the majority, and the youngest brokers are still a small minority. Renewal is happening, but at a pace that makes succession a live question for many businesses now, not in ten years.
Source: MFAA State of Mortgage & Finance Broking Report 2026 (2025 calendar year data). Selected figures only; see the full report for definitions, samples and caveats.
State of Broking 2026 • Part 3 of 4
The 50-Plus Share Fell to 32.0%. Under-31s Are Still Just 8.2% of Brokers
The MFAA describes “encouraging signs of younger people entering the industry”. The numbers back that up, modestly. The bigger story for principals is what has not changed: nearly two in three brokers are over 40, and the pipeline behind them is thin.
- Part 1: The activity barbell: who settled nothing, who settled $25m+ (publishing Tue 29 Sep)
- Part 2: Pay: upfront, trail and the clawback line (publishing Wed 30 Sep)
- Part 3: Workforce renewal: age, entry and women in broking (you are here)
- Part 4: The state split: where brokers are dense and where settlements grew (publishing Mon 5 Oct)
In this article
What the report measured
The MFAA released the State of Mortgage & Finance Broking Report 2026, its first annual benchmark of the industry, on 25 September 2026. The Broker Times attended the launch briefing. The report covers the 2025 calendar year and draws principally on data from nine participating aggregators, analysed by Comparator, a Cotality business. The MFAA’s public summary of the report is here.
The age analysis uses a matched sample of six participating aggregators in both 2024 and 2025, with an ‘Unspecified’ category where age was not available. The gender figures come from a different source, the MFAA Quarterly Survey for the June 2026 quarter, which the report presents as a point-in-time workforce snapshot rather than a 2025 annual measure.
The middle is growing, the top is shrinking
The share of brokers aged 50 and over fell from 35.1% in 2024 to 32.0% in 2025. The 41–50 group rose from 31.5% to 32.5%, and the 31–40 group from 26.0% to 27.2%.
These are shares, not head counts, and the total broker population grew 9.1% over the year. A falling 50-plus share does not necessarily mean those brokers left. It can simply mean newer, younger brokers joined faster. The report does not break down movements in or out of the industry.
The youngest brokers: real growth, small base
The 18–25 cohort rose from 2.0% to 2.4% of the sample, and the 26–30 cohort from 5.3% to 5.8%. On our arithmetic, brokers aged 30 and under went from 7.3% to 8.2%.
The report notes the 18–25 group recorded the strongest percentage growth, “albeit from the smallest specified cohort”. Put another way: for roughly every broker aged 30 or under in the sample, there are about four aged 50 and over.
The MFAA’s forward-looking section is direct about what that requires:
“Maintaining a sustainable workforce will require continued focus on effective entry pathways, education and professional development, mentoring, career progression, and succession planning.”MFAA State of Mortgage & Finance Broking Report 2026, Forward-looking implications
Women in broking: 27.4%
The June 2026 Quarterly Survey shows the broker workforce is 72.6% male and 27.4% female. The female share is up from 26.8% in the MFAA’s Industry Intelligence Service 19th Edition, covering the period ending September 2024, an increase of 0.6 percentage points.
The report describes that as a modest movement indicating a slight improvement, while noting the workforce “nevertheless remains materially male-dominated”. Separately, across seven aggregators, female brokers accounted for about a quarter of residential settlement value in both 2024 and 2025, with little change in the split. The report cautions that this is not a productivity comparison, because broker counts by gender are not built into that measure.
MFAA chief executive Anja Pannek summed up the overall picture in the report’s CEO’s report:
“The findings point to an industry that is expanding, but also one that must continue to evolve.”Anja Pannek, Chief Executive Officer, Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia, CEO’s report, State of Mortgage & Finance Broking Report 2026
Why this is a succession question
Part 2 of this series showed median trail revenue rising 18.7% across participating aggregators. Trail books are long-lived assets. When a third of the workforce is 50 or over, a meaningful number of those books will change hands, be sold or be run down over the next decade. Who takes them over, and on what terms, is a business question every principal in that bracket should be answering now.
For younger brokers, the same numbers read as opportunity. The report links workforce renewal to mentoring and career progression, and a senior broker planning an exit needs someone to hand clients to.
Building a pathway in your own business
Five steps for principals
- Map your own age mix. Who in your business, including you, is likely to step back in the next five to ten years?
- Name a successor or a plan. Internal promotion, merger or sale. Write it down, even as a draft.
- Create an entry role. Many brokers start in support or credit roles. A defined pathway from support to writing broker helps you recruit.
- Look at who you hire. With women at 27.4% of the workforce, recruiting from a wider pool is also a growth lever.
- Use industry programs. Check what mentoring and education support your association and aggregator offer, and what your licensee requires of new brokers.
Key takeaways
- Brokers aged 50 and over fell from 35.1% to 32.0% of a matched six-aggregator sample in 2025.
- The 31–40 and 41–50 groups both grew their share; brokers aged 41 and over were 64.5% of the sample, down from 66.6%.
- The 18–25 cohort rose from 2.0% to 2.4% and the 26–30 cohort from 5.3% to 5.8%.
- Women made up 27.4% of the broker workforce in the June 2026 Quarterly Survey, up from 26.8% in the period to September 2024.
- The MFAA links a sustainable workforce to entry pathways, mentoring, career progression and succession planning.
Frequently asked
Did older brokers leave the industry in 2025?
The report does not say. The 50-plus share fell, but the broker population grew 9.1%, so the change can reflect younger brokers joining rather than older brokers leaving.
Are the age and gender figures from the same data?
No. Age uses a matched six-aggregator sample for 2024 and 2025. Gender comes from the MFAA Quarterly Survey for the June 2026 quarter.
Do female brokers settle less than male brokers?
The report does not support that comparison. Female brokers accounted for about a quarter of settlement value in the seven-aggregator sample, but the report says it should not be read as an individual productivity comparison.
Where can I read the full report?
MFAA members can access it in the Research section of the Member Portal. Non-members can contact the MFAA at info@mfaa.com.au.
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Sources: Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA), State of Mortgage & Finance Broking Report 2026, published 25 September 2026, for all report figures and for quotations from the CEO’s report; MFAA media release, “A home loan facilitated through a mortgage broker every 38 seconds”, 25 September 2026 (PDF); MFAA news, “New report captures the growing role of brokers across Australia”. MFAA Quarterly Survey, June 2026 quarter, as reported in the report, for the gender split. Figures are credited to the MFAA State of Mortgage & Finance Broking Report 2026. Calculations marked as ours are The Broker Times’ arithmetic on the report’s published figures. The full report is available to MFAA members via the Member Portal.
Interactive • Broker Tool
Your Succession and Pathway Check
The workforce numbers in three tabs, then a checklist to work through with your team.
Share of brokers, 2024 → 2025
- 18–252.0% → 2.4%
- 26–305.3% → 5.8%
- 31–4026.0% → 27.2%
- 41–5031.5% → 32.5%
- 50 and over35.1% → 32.0%
June 2026 quarter
- Female27.4%
- Male72.6%
- Female share, period to September 202426.8%
For principals and for new brokers
Principals: about one in three brokers is 50 or over. If that includes you, a succession plan protects the value of your book and your clients.
Newer brokers: the pipeline is thin, which makes mentoring and a path to taking on clients more available than the numbers might suggest. Ask for it.
Succession and pathway checklist
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Start by mapping your team’s age mix.
More broker-first coverage at The Broker Times →
Disclaimer: This article is for general information and professional development purposes only. It does not constitute legal, compliance, or financial advice. Brokers should consult their aggregator’s compliance team and, where required, seek independent legal advice regarding their obligations under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 and ASIC’s responsible lending guidelines.
