Finder’s RBA Survey: Experts reveal where Aussies can save the most

Ahead of tomorrow's cash rate call, the nation's economists have revealed where households can find the biggest savings.

In this month's Finder RBA Cash Rate Survey™, 35 experts and economists weighed in on future cash rate moves and other issues relating to the state of the economy.

All panellists (100%, 35/35) are predicting a hold from the RBA in December, keeping it at 3.60%.

This month, experts were asked: Where do you think Australians can find the biggest savings/relief right now when it comes to their finances?

Here's what they said:

Adj Prof Noel Whittaker, QUT: "Good money managers know how to budget. They need to learn budgeting."

Nalini Prasad, UNSW Sydney: "By spending less."

Stella Huangfu, University of Sydney: "1. Re-assess utility and bill costs (energy, electricity, insurance, etc.). 2. Tackle high-interest debt aggressively (credit cards, buy-now-pay-later, etc.)"

Nicholas Gruen, Lateral Economics: "They should make a credible threat to move to a lower margin lender and then, if they can, carry out the threat."

Peter Boehm, Pathfinder Consulting: "Pay off the full credit card balance at each statement date and shop around for the best loan products."

Malcolm Wood, Ord Minnett: "Fully diversified portfolios."

Kyle Rodda, Capital.com: "Refinance your mortgage at a lower rate if you can."

Jakob Madsen, University of Western Australia: "Stop the conspicuous spending on massive big petrol gutsing luxury cars that are killing our environment."

Cameron Murray, Fresh Economic Thinking: "Just normal things – spend less than you earn, economise."

Dale Gillham, Wealth Within: "That is such a big question, as everyone is different. The easy answer is for them not to have a mortgage, as the interest is a big lifestyle expense. The tougher decisions that can give you big savings are to have only one car and drop those monthly subscriptions that eat up your income."

Stephen Miller, GSFM: "More savings implies less spending (consumption). In the longer-term it is tax relief but this attendant on (the unlikely event of) budget restraint."

Scott Kuru, Freedom Property Investors: "There are definitely plenty of savings Aussie families can make in how they organise the money coming into and out of their household. I've written extensively about that here."

A whopping 43% of Aussies have less than $1,000 in savings, according to data from Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker.

Graham Cooke, head of consumer research at Finder, said now is the perfect time to hit refresh on your finances.

"Take a hard look at where you've been spending your money. Stop paying for things you don't need or aren't using – think unused memberships and subscriptions – and don't pay too much for what you do need – your mortgage, energy provider, etc.

"Then think about ways to bring in extra cash, whether through investing, a savings account with a better interest rate, or starting a side hustle," Cooke said.

Majority of experts reject 50-year mortgages as a path to accessible housing

The Trump administration recently announced it was considering a 50-year mortgage repayment plan.

4 in 5 panellists who weighed in* (79%, 22/28) do not believe 50-year mortgages are a good tool to make the housing market more accessible.

Stella Huangfu from the University of Sydney said while 50-year mortgages lower monthly repayments, they won't make housing cheaper.

"In most cases it actually allows people to borrow more, which pushes prices even higher. Buyers end up paying far more interest over their lifetime, carrying debt for decades longer, and building equity much more slowly," Huangfu said.

Dale Gillham from Wealth Within said increasing the mortgage length benefits the lenders far more than it benefits consumers.

"Australia has this unique love affair with property, and we need to look deeper into why this is.

"Further, we need to look at what is driving prices to unrealistic levels. In the last 40 or so years, housing affordability has gone from around 4 times the average wage to over 8 times. As it stands, due to government compliance, taxes and fees, building new homes is far from affordable, and in many cases is not viable for investors.

"We need to fix the systemic issues first before we make loans more accessible, as this will only pour more fuel on the fire, with the financial institutions the big winners," Gillham said.

Shane Oliver from AMP noted, "They will just mean people will end up paying even more in interest payments without doing anything to improve affordability."

Nalini Prasad from UNSW Sydney cited the difficulties of servicing a mortgage in retirement.

"It's hard to pay off a mortgage if you're retired," Prasad said.

However, Nicholas Gruen from Lateral Economics said 50-year mortgages could be a good tool.

"Debt needs to be serviced, not paid off. For so long as we treat housing as an asset market, that's how we should see it," Gruen said.

Leanne Pilkington from Laing+Simmons agreed.

"Affordability is a major issue and it makes sense to explore every potential solution available," Pilkington said.

*Experts are not required to answer every question in the survey.