The Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) President, Mr Hayden Groves said the latest interest rate hike to 3.35% will add heavily to the burden Australians are already experiencing.
“Recent CPI statistics show inflation is stabilising and employment is also slowing.
“Coinciding with this is the ABS December report that showed retailing spending figures have fallen substantially by 3.9% as people tighten their belts and spend less.
Mr Groves said that RBA’s own estimates show 800,000 fixed loan contracts which are expected to end this year.
“This will further impact negatively on households and confidence,” he said.
“The RBA is also expecting to further increase interest rates but is also saying that the lag effect has not yet kicked in.
“So they are aggressively pursuing rate rises knowing the impact from previous rate rises is yet to happen.
“The rise in interest rates on a $750,000 mortgage has added more than $1,400 in monthly mortgage repayments further adding to the decline in housing affordability.”
