Australian Mortgage Borrowers Struggle To Pay Home Loans
The results of a new survey suggest that mortgage borrowers are scrapping their holiday plans in order to concentrate on paying off their home loan.
According to the results of the latest Bankwest/Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) home finance index, more than half of those polled were sacrificing a number of everyday necessities in order to absorb the cost of higher interest rates.
“With interest rates higher than last year, many mortgage holders seem to be holding back on their spending,” Bankwest retail chief executive Vittoria Shortt said.
The survey polled over 1,000 property owners across the country, and found that over half said they ate out less, whilst just under half said they were cutting costs at home and taking packed lunches to work.
42 per cent of respondents said they were either scrapping their holiday plans altogether or considering cheaper holiday options. 40 per cent of those polled said they were now purchasing food in bulk.
“There is a clear move to more thrifty spending for many Australian households,” Ms Shortt said.
Australians seeking to cut their costs have implement measures ranging from selling unused items to seeking additional work and reducing insurance payments and superannuation contributions.
“Although some of the cost cutting strategies may seem extreme … it’s actually down to principals of good financial management,” MFAA chief executive officer Phil Naylor said.
“Borrowers can’t avoid rising interest rates, but they can minimise the impact by considering making an extra mortgage repayment with extra funds that would have otherwise been used for things like holidays.”
Compare Australian Savings Account Deals
Comments
Leave a Reply