As we all know by now, the RBA hiked interest rates another 0.5% at its meeting earlier this week.
 
And it’s probably not surprising that at the time of writing the ANZ, CBA and Macquarie have all passed on the rate increase to mortgage holders in full. Really, you can expect that all lenders will follow suit – they don’t really have much choice.
 
We’ve said before, you can expect the cost-of-living pain to get worse before it gets better.
 
For an owner-occupier with a $500,000 variable rate mortgage and 25 years to go, a 0.5% increase in the lending rate adds about $140 per month in repayments, making the total increase in mortgage repayments around $500 per month since May.
 
That’s not great news for many who are struggling, however there is some upside with some relief coming from petrol prices falling around 30 cents per litre, and the price of avocados dropping below $1 due to a massive oversupply!

And just a reminder, the state government is offering households a $250 rebate to compare and switch energy providers. Pleasantly, it turns out it’s not a scam, but rather than taking my word for it, Google “$250 electricity rebate Victoria” (or something similar) and you’ll be taken to compare.energy.vic.gov.au. Fill in your details and compare your bill against other providers, and you’ll receive your rebate in around a week. Applications are open between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2023.