RBA Hikes Interest Rates to 15-Year High, Mortgage Holders Face Cumulative Pain

The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to hike interest rates for a fourth time in 2026, pushing them to a 15-year high.

This will add $91 per month to typical $600,000 mortgage repayments and raise the average owner-occupier variable rate to 6.49%.

Data insights director Sally Tindall at Canstar estimates that borrowers will be poorer by hundreds of dollars a month due to cumulative impact of multiple rate hikes.

RBA governor Michele Bullock has stated that unemployment needs to be between 4.5 and 5.0% to control inflation, but union groups and social service sector have expressed concerns over the potential for higher unemployment.