Finder’s RBA Survey: Cash rate hike to cost the average borrower $1,416 per year
The RBA has raised the cash rate for the second time in a row, bringing it to 4.10% in March.
In this month's Finder RBA Cash Rate Surveyâ„¢, 37 experts and economists weighed in on future cash rate moves and other issues relating to the state of the economy.
Even before ongoing escalations in Iran shifted rate expectations late last week, a majority (86%, 32/37) of panellists were predicting a hike in the next two months.
Graham Cooke, head of consumer research at Finder, said the hike would be another punch in the gut for millions of households who are already on edge.
"This is a tough blow at a time when Aussie families are already feeling the pinch from a volatile global market.
"Between the rising cost of fuel and now higher mortgage repayments, financial safety nets could be pushed to breaking point.
"The RBA has decided that the risk of runaway inflation is a bigger threat than the immediate strain on budgets.
"How long this conflict continues will determine the full impact on Aussie households. Homeowners should brace for more potential pain to come," Cooke said.
The average Aussie borrower will have to pay $118 more per month – $1,416 per year – compared to last month.
Compared to January this year (before the RBA started hiking the cash rate) the average Aussie borrower will have to fork out $2,805 more per year.
Experts weigh in on the main contributor to unaffordable property prices in Australia
More than 1 in 3 Australians (36%) – who don't own property – don't think they'll ever be able to afford their own home, according to data from Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker.
Almost 3 in 4 panellists who weighed in* (72%, 21/29) believe supply constraint is the main contributor to unaffordable property prices in Australia.
Less than 1 in 5 (17%, 5/29) say migration is the main cause of unaffordable housing.
More than 3 in 5 (63%, 19/30) do not think there should be a cap on the number of negatively geared properties Australians can own.
AI to come for more Aussie jobs
A number of high-profile Australian companies, including Atlassian and WiseTech, have recently made AI-related job cuts.
Almost all experts (92%, 23/25) expect more large-scale (defined in the question as 100+ employees) AI-related redundancies in the next 12 months in Australia.
1 in 10 (11%) Australian employees say they feel insecure about their current job, according to data from Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker. A further 20% feel neutral, while 69% feel secure in their current role.
*Experts are not required to answer every question in the survey.
Click here to see what our experts had to say about the cash rate.
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