New research from Roy Morgan shows mortgage stress has dropped to its lowest level since January 2023, but building a buffer still matter as it protects you from interest rate hikes.
After a challenging few years for household budgets, this is an encouraging news for borrowers as it indicates many households are starting to feel more comfortable with their repayments
Even so, now’s a good time to think ahead. Building a buffer into your loan can help protect you if rates, expenses or income change down the track.
If you’re buying this year, don’t test your budget at today’s repayment only. A safer approach is to check whether you could still manage if rates rose, your expenses jumped or your income changed.
If you already have a loan, you’ve got options if cash flow feels tight:
- Refinancing to reduce the rate or improve features.
- Restructuring (term, repayment type, offsets) to smooth repayments.
- Consolidating higher-interest debts so more of your money goes to the mortgage, not interest.
Plenty of people feel cash flow pressure at times – it’s nothing to be ashamed of. The key is catching it early while you still have choices.
If you want to sense-check your repayments or make your loan more comfortable, Contact Us and we’ll map out options that fit your situation.