Mortgaging meals: Sacrifices Australians are making to stay on top of repayments
This Finder research was seen on
This Finder research was seen on
Mortgage holders are in survival mode skipping everything from meals to mobile bills to stay on top of monster repayments, according to new research by Finder.
A Finder survey of 1,062 respondents – 346 of whom have a mortgage – revealed 1 in 4 (25%) have had to skip paying for another expense to prioritise keeping a roof over their head.
That's an estimated 825,000 mortgage holders who are short on cash every month.
As of July 2024, the average home loan in Australia was $641,143, showing a 1.1% increase compared to the previous month and a 8.0% increase when compared to the same time last year.
Finder's data shows 1 in 10 borrowers (10%) admit they've had to skip out on groceries, while the same proportion have skipped a meal to cover their growing mortgage repayments.
Energy bills (7%), petrol (6%) and credit card bills (6%) were all shelved so mortgagors had the cash for their home loan.
Richard Whitten, home loans expert at Finder, said many are drowning in mortgage debt.
"Aussies are increasingly running out of money each month and have to choose which bills to pay and which to delay.
"When you're struggling financially, a roof over your head comes first. Even if it means skipping bills or other important expenses."
Over the past decade, the average sizes of home loans in all states have shown significant increases.
"Mortgage debts are sky high and the hard truth is that people's expenses exceed their incomes, leaving households very vulnerable."
Whitten said missed and late payments on bills and utilities may impact your credit score.
"If you are worried you won't be able to afford a bill, get in touch with your provider straight away as they may be able to arrange a payment plan or suggest other hardship arrangements.
"You want to minimise credit damage from late payments so consider shopping around for a cheaper interest rate or going interest only on your mortgage until you can improve serviceability."
The research shows borrowers had missed payments on personal loans (3%), Buy Now Pay Later (3%) and mobile phone bills (3%) to meet their mortgage responsibilities.
Health insurance (2%), kids school fees (1%), home insurance (1%) and internet (1%) had all been missed.
| Have you skipped any of the following to pay your mortgage repayments in the past 12 months? | |
|---|---|
| Groceries | 10% |
| Skipped a meal | 10% |
| Energy bill | 7% |
| Petrol | 6% |
| Credit card | 6% |
| Personal loan | 3% |
| Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) | 3% |
| Mobile phone | 3% |
| Health insurance | 2% |
| Kids school fees | 1% |
| Home insurance | 1% |
| Internet | 1% |
| Car loan | 1% |
| No, I have never missed anything | 75% |
| Source: Finder survey of 346 Australians with a mortgage, June 2024 |
Methodology
- Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker is a monthly recurring nationally representative survey of more than 60,000 respondents.
- Figures in this release are based on 1,062 respondents – 346 of whom have a mortgage – from June 2024.
- The Consumer Sentiment Tracker is owned by Finder and operated by Qualtrics, an SAP company.
- The survey has been running monthly since May 2019.
Here's some tips for dealing with mortgage stress.
