With interest rates expected to start coming down soon, experts say those with savings should take advantage of the high deposit rates now on offer.
Home buyers should use the time before rates fall to research the market - as the number of properties for sale will explode when the Reserve Bank of Australia cuts rates, others say.
But for those who fixed their mortgages this year while rates were rising, the outlook is grim. Experts predict most will be stuck paying high rates until their terms expire.
The Sunday Herald Sun asked financial gurus for their advice on what to do now.
SAVINGS
Lisa Claes, of ING Direct, said the high rates offered by online savings accounts would fall when the RBA cuts rates.
"At-call products will fall when the cash rate comes down, so there is value in looking at term deposits," she said.
Laura Menschik, a WLM Financial Services financial adviser, said people should move quickly.
"If you have cash that you want to save for a specific purpose you should lock it in now to ensure good returns for the period of the term," she said.
But savers with a drawdown facility on their mortgages might be better off putting their savings into their home.
"If you had $20,000 . . . and you had a mortgage facility that allows you to make extra payments - but also has a redraw facility - the best strategy may be to put the money against the mortgage and redraw on it when required," she said.
"Firstly, because you are reducing your debt and secondly because you are not liable to pay tax on the earned income."
BUYING A HOME
Phil Naylor, Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia chief, said it was unclear how quickly property prices would rise when the bank cuts rates.
"I think it might take a few cuts before it really affects property prices," he said.
But independent property investment adviser Monique Sasson Wakelin, of Wakelin Property Advisory, predicted property prices would rise quickly when rates were cut.
"In the interim, potential buyers should be doing as much research as they can on the ground and working out what they can afford," she said.
FIXED MORTGAGES
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 14,590 Victorians fixed their mortgages between January and June this year -- just as rates were peaking.
Mr Naylor said their options were limited.
"To break a contract will cost several thousand dollars," he said.
But Ms Menschik said that as most people did not fix their whole mortgage, they would still get some relief.
