Some of the best home loans in March 2023

Interest rates are widely tipped to rise at the next meeting of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), with at least one more hike expected to follow. As the cash rate potentially approaches its peak, what will this mean for Australian homeowners and first home buyers?

Economists from the big four banks have updated their interest rate forecasts, with several now expecting the cash rate to reach a peak of 4.10 per cent by May 2023. 

Big four banks’ cash rate forecasts

• CBA: 3.85% by April 2023, then dropping to 2.85% by December 2023
• Westpac: 4.10% by May 2023, then dropping to 2.35% by December 2025
• NAB: 4.10% by May 2023, then dropping to 3.10% by May 2024
• ANZ: 4.10% by May 2023, then dropping to 3.85% by November 2024

As banks and mortgage lenders pass these hikes on by raising interest rates, this could put more pressure on the already-stretched budgets of many homeowners.

And while rising rates have been linked to falling property values, this doesn’t automatically mean good news for first home buyers. Higher interest rates can reduce a buyer’s borrowing power, making it harder to borrow the money required to afford many properties. Plus, some banks have already raised rates on selected home loans for new borrowers this month, including fixed rate options and deals for buyers with deposits of less than 20 per cent.

When mortgage markets are challenging, it’s important to shop around and compare your options. RateCity’s Real Time Ratings™ aim to make comparing home loans quicker and simpler by combining the cost and flexibility of each option into a single star rating. For an even simpler comparison, you could compare home loans by their Real Time Ratings™ on RateCity’s Home Loan Leaderboards.   

Some of the best variable home loans

Some of the best 3-year fixed rates

Some of the best small deposit home loans

Compare home loans in Australia