The Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA's) decision to leave interest rates at 4.25 per cent in its latest financial statement has met with opprobrium from various sectors of the country's residential property industry, with Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) president Pamela Bennett claiming it is a mistake.
People paying off their mortgages for Australian homes could have been offered a much-needed boost with a cut to rates, Ms Bennett suggested.
Furthermore, she claimed that it could have acted as a catalyst to encourage more first-time buyers to enter into the market and help increase flow across the economy as a whole.
"Lower interest rates are needed to reduce the proportion of income that Australians are spending on loan repayments in an effort to improve the worsening affordability situation," argued Ms Bennett.
Glenn Stevens, the governor of the RBA, justified the bank's decision by pointing to the gradual alleviation of financial pressure in Europe as evidence that the global financial situation is on the up.
Posted by Steve Douglas
