The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) today announced interest rates would remain on hold at 4.35%.
The main reason for the decision was the recent news on inflation, which for the 12 months to December 2023 was 4%. While this is still above the RBA’s target, it is continuing to show a downward trend, especially in the December 2023 quarter, which was the lowest since March 2021.
With regard to the future direction of interest rates, in its statement today the RBA outlined a lot about the priority of bringing inflation back into its target range of 2-3% within a “reasonable timeframe”. It also warned that there still may be the need to raise interest rates if inflation remains stubbornly high.
However, this language hasn’t stopped the bulk of economists and the money markets from forecasting interest rate cuts by the end of the year, with some predicting two or three rate cuts in this time.
This is great news for mortgage holders and it seems buyers are taking the news very well too. In recent weeks, buyer inspections and enquiries have been returning in good numbers.
Overall, 2024 is looking great for real estate in our area!
About the writer
Ian Pepper has had a long and distinguished career as a finance and real estate professional. Originally trained as a Chartered Accountant in 1995, Ian worked in Sydney and London. He has an MBA from Macquarie Graduate School of Management and now sells real estate with Ray White Helensburgh. Ian also volunteers with local community groups including school P&Cs, sporting clubs and business chambers.
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