The Aporia · Big banks expected to follow Macquarie and sting home owners with rate rise

Big banks expected to follow Macquarie and sting home owners with rate rise

Read the original at The Sydney Morning Herald ↗

Cite

APA MLA Chicago

Bonyhady, N. (2026, September 30). Big banks expected to follow Macquarie and sting home owners with rate rise. The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/big-banks-expected-to-follow-macquarie-and-sting-home-owners-with-rate-rise-20260930-p611mn.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_feed

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

Australia's major banks are anticipated to raise home loan interest rates following Macquarie Bank's lead, reflecting the Reserve Bank of Australia’s recent quarter-point increase. This move would add approximately $122 to monthly repayments for a typical $800,000 mortgage. Despite concerns over borrower stress, data shows low overdue repayment rates and record-high offset account balances, suggesting some financial resilience among homeowners. However, analysts warn that further rate hikes could exacerbate economic strain in certain sectors.

Written by AI on 2026-09-30, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has raised interest rates to their highest level in 15 years, increasing the cash rate target from 4.35% to 4.60%. This is the fourth increase this year and reflects the RBA's ongoing efforts to combat high inflation.

On a $700,000 loan with a 25-year term at an interest rate of 6.50%, monthly mortgage repayments will increase by approximately $93 following the latest rise. Over four increases this year, borrowers would see their monthly payments increase by about $364 on a $600,000 loan and roughly $7,300 annually.

The impact extends beyond mortgages: higher interest rates attract foreign investment to Australia due to better returns, potentially strengthening the Australian dollar. However, increased borrowing costs will likely slow down spending in other sectors such as dining out and retail shopping, which could affect businesses reliant on consumer spending.

Despite the hikes, housing remains unaffordable for many, with further rate increases forecasted by some analysts up to 5.1% by mid-2027, posing significant challenges for household finances already strained by rising costs like petrol prices nearing $2.40 per liter. The Bureau of Statistics is set to release September's inflation data soon, which will provide more insight into the effectiveness of these measures and future policy directions.

Written for “RBA Interest Rate Hikes” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 17 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 14% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

Banks raise interest rates after RBA lifts cash rate to highest since 2011 Same event

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Hedges 1 of 10 claims Outlet record 68/100

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“The articles describe different banks (Macquarie and Australia's big four vs. Barclays) responding to separate central bank decisions in distinct regions (Australia vs. UK).”

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Hedges 2 of 10 claims Outlet record 65/100

“The articles discuss different aspects of the housing and mortgage markets in separate countries (UK vs. Australia) and do not describe a single, identical event.”

Live: Taylor blames 'home-grown inflation' for 15-year-high rate hike Different event

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Hedges 0 of 25 claims Outlet record 68/100

“The articles discuss related topics (interest rate hikes) but describe different aspects of them; Article A focuses on Taylor's blame for inflation, while Article B discusses banks following through with the rate hike.”

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Hedges 3 of 12 claims Outlet record 66/100

“The articles discuss different aspects of financial stability and interest rates in Australia but do not describe the same specific incident.”

Brisbane and Sydney hit hardest by falling house prices as 5.2% shaved from Australian property values Different event

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“The articles discuss different aspects of the Australian housing market and economy, not a single specific incident.”

Mortgage calculator: Here’s how much extra your repayments will be Different event

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Hedges 0 of 7 claims Outlet record 61/100

“The articles refer to different dates: Article A is about the interest rate rise announced on September 29, while Article B discusses expectations for banks' actions after the rise on September 30.”

Breaking: RBA lifts rates to highest level in 15 years Different event

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Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 68/100

“Article A describes the RBA lifting interest rates, while Article B discusses how banks are expected to follow this rate rise by increasing mortgage repayments for home owners.”

Australia news LIVE: Bullock blames domestic spending for rate hike, inflation as government insists global factors to blame; No explosives found inside vans searched in UK terror probe Different event

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Hedges 3 of 10 claims Outlet record 61/100

“Article A mentions multiple news items including a rate hike, while Article B focuses specifically on banks expected to follow the Reserve Bank's rate rise, indicating different specific events or aspects.”

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

14%

3 of 22 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

Leans left

of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate

Publisher signals

61/100

The Sydney Morning Herald's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Economy/Business

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-09-30 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

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Running correction rate · 15 correction(s)

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Nick Bonyhady

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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 13 articles by Nick Bonyhady →

Topics

Australia Australian Macquarie UBS the Reserve Bank’s

Subjects

Australian NORP · 3× Storey PERSON · 3× Macquarie ORG · 2× UBS ORG · 2× the Reserve Bank’s ORG · 2× , John Storey PERSON · 1× Australia GPE · 1× Ben Perham PERSON · 1× Macquarie Bank ORG · 1× the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority ORG · 1×

Narrative

Cassandra Goldie, chief executive of the Australian Council of Social Services, said while the organisation was concerned about the consequences of rate rises for mortgage holders, renters deserved protection. “We’re very worried about renters because if we see a further increase there, people on low and modest incomes are going to be facing homelessness at this point,” Goldie said on ABC radio.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-30

🔮 Australia’s big four banks are expected to follow Macquarie and pass on the Reserve Bank’s quarter-percentage-point rate rise to home owners, adding $122 in monthly repayments on a standard $800,000 mortgage, and increasing borrowers’ pain following three rate rises earlier this year.

2026-09-30 · The Sydney Morning Herald

Big banks expected to follow Macquarie and sting home owners with rate rise · assertive framing

Claims (22 extracted, 3 hedged)

Australia’s big four banks are expected to follow Macquarie and pass on the Reserve Bank’s quarter-percentage-point rate rise to home owners, adding $122 in monthly repayments on a standard $800,000 mortgage, and increasing borrowers’ pain following three rate rises earlier this year. asserted

banks → expect → rises

While the rise to 4.6 per cent will bite for mortgage holders, federal data shows the nation’s total offset account balances are still near record highs, and overdue home loan repayment rates are still very low. asserted

rates → bite → highs

Spending and labour market resilience has played into the Reserve Bank’s thinking on rates to date and, some analysts expect, could support the case for further rate rises that could exacerbate early signs of stress in parts of the economy. uncertain

that → play → economy

Head of Australian bank research at UBS, John Storey, said it was all but inevitable that the big banks would pass on the rate rise. asserted

banks → say → rise

“I think it’s a fait accompli, unfortunately,” Storey said. asserted

Storey → think → ?

Macquarie Bank, the nation’s fifth-largest home lender, said on Tuesday it will pass on the central bank’s 25-basis-point increase in full, with the change taking effect from October 15. asserted

change → say → October

Savers with deposits in many of the bank’s accounts will get the same increase. asserted

Savers → get → increase

“For any customers concerned about making their home loan repayments, we encourage them to get in touch, as financial assistance may be available,” said Macquarie personal banking chief Ben Perham. uncertain

Perham → concern → touch

Data released by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority on September 17 shows that for the quarter ending in June this year, Australian offset balances stood at a total of $340 billion. asserted

balances → release → billion

That is up about $39 billion on the same period a year before, but down from the staggering $349 billion recorded in the March quarter of 2026. asserted

That → record → 2026

Those accounts help cushion the consequences of interest rises by reducing the portion of an outstanding loan that is carrying interest and giving households a financial pool to draw on for repayments if needed. asserted

that → help → repayments

Despite recent rate rises, data from the banks isn’t showing a large jump in people struggling with their mortgages. asserted

data → show → mortgages

ANZ figures from August show, as of June 30, it had a 0.86 per cent exposure to home loans that were more than 90 days past due in its Australian portfolio, up three basis points compared with March. asserted

that → show → March

“We continue to watch the external environment closely across our network,” chief executive Nuno Matos said at the time. asserted

Matos → continue → time

“Our balance sheet and capital position remain strong, and we are staying close to our customers should they need support.” asserted

they → remain → support

Storey, the UBS analyst, said that coupled with falling house prices, the offset data showed “there’s a bit of strain, with consumers that aren’t as cashed up as they used to be”. asserted

they → say → consumers

But he cautioned that the consequences were uneven, depending on factors such as when people bought their homes. asserted

people → caution → homes

Older Australians who owned their homes outright could benefit from rising interest rates on their savings accounts, Storey noted. uncertain

Storey → own → accounts

Overall, he said, banks and mortgage holders were protected by the fact that many had large equity in their homes and were ahead on their payments, but flagged issues in the private credit industry and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East as risks. asserted

many → say → risks

Goldie → say → radio

The big four banks were contacted for comment. asserted

banks → contact → comment

The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. asserted

newsletter → deliver → stories