Sweet Relief From Mortgage Crunch

Newcastle Herald

Wednesday October 8, 2008

By TYRON BUTSON

THE Reserve Bank's move to slash cash rates could not have come at a better time for the McMahon family.

The Raworth family of five are among thousands of Hunter battlers welcoming the bank's announcement it would cut the rate by one percentage point to 6 per cent yesterday.

"This is possibly a real reprieve for us we were getting to the point where even the most basic necessities were getting hard to afford," Donna McMahon said.

"Luxuries were the first thing to go and you're trying to budget like crazy and you suddenly find it [your mortgage] is consuming so much of your income."

Mrs McMahon, an accountant, and her husband, David, a workshop supervisor for a Maitland engineering firm, estimate close to half of their combined income goes towards mortgage repayments.

The family said they had struggled under recent rises and the mounting stress of juggling a mortgage, jobs and raising three children under seven.

Mrs McMahon, 34, who recently gave birth to their third child, has gone back to working five-day fortnights to make ends meet and said they had been struggling to save money or afford minor luxuries for some time.

Her husband, David, 38, said that while a lot of people don't understand how rates or banks work, everyone understands the RBA's rate cut could be good news.

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

Back to News Index | Back to Home