This page collects the Australian mortgage numbers that get quoted, argued about and misremembered, in one place, each one dated and attributed. It draws on RBA statistical tables, ABS Lending Indicators, APRA monthly statistics, the Cotality Home Value Index and published lender rate cards. It is reviewed monthly; journalists and publishers are welcome to cite any figure with attribution and a link (see the methodology section at the bottom).
1. The rate environment
The RBA has hiked three times in 2026: February, March and May, each by 25 basis points. The cash rate sits at 4.35 per cent and the next decision lands on 15 and 16 June, with markets pricing roughly a 75 per cent probability of a hold.
| 2026 cash rate path | Level |
|---|---|
| Start of 2026 | 3.60% |
| February meeting (+25bp) | 3.85% |
| March meeting (+25bp) | 4.10% |
| May meeting, 6 May (+25bp) | 4.35% |
| 15-16 June meeting | Decision pending; ~75% hold priced |
As at June 2026. Source: RBA cash rate target announcements and statistical tables (rba.gov.au/statistics).
| Owner-occupier P&I, up to 80% LVR | Advertised rate |
|---|---|
| Big 4 variable | 5.99% to 6.20% |
| Digital lenders (Athena, ING, Macquarie) | 5.74% to 5.99% |
| Big 4 fixed, 1 year | 5.69% to 5.89% |
| Big 4 fixed, 2 years | 5.79% to 5.99% |
| Big 4 fixed, 3 years | 5.89% to 6.15% |
| Big 4 fixed, 5 years | 6.05% to 6.35% |
As at June 2026. Source: published lender rate cards for new owner-occupier principal-and-interest lending. Indicative ranges; individual pricing varies with LVR and discounts.
2. The loyalty tax: front book versus back book
The single most cited number on this page. The RBA's Lenders' Interest Rates series tracks the average rate on outstanding variable owner-occupier loans against the average written on new ones. The gap is the price of not asking.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Average rate, new variable owner-occupier loans | ~5.90% |
| Average rate, outstanding variable owner-occupier loans | ~6.38% |
| The gap (the loyalty tax) | 48 basis points |
| Annual interest cost of the gap, $500,000 loan | ~$2,400 ($200 a month) |
| Annual interest cost of the gap, $750,000 loan | ~$3,600 ($300 a month) |
| Annual interest cost of the gap, $1,000,000 loan | ~$4,800 ($400 a month) |
As at June 2026. Source: RBA Lenders' Interest Rates series, April 2026 release (rba.gov.au/statistics). Dollar figures are the interest cost of 48 basis points on the stated balance.
If you have not had a rate review in 18 months, the gap above is your starting point. Run the numbers in our refinance calculator or start with the refinancing guide.
3. Average new loan sizes, nationally and by state
The average new owner-occupier loan is roughly $680,000 nationally as at June 2026 (ABS Lending Indicators, indicative). The state picture varies enormously because dwelling values do. The table below derives an indicative new loan per state from the capital-city median dwelling value at an assumed 80 per cent LVR; the assumption is spelled out in the methodology.
| State | Median dwelling value (capital) | Indicative new loan at 80% LVR |
|---|---|---|
| NSW (Sydney) | $1,160,000 | $928,000 |
| VIC (Melbourne) | $830,000 | $664,000 |
| QLD (Brisbane) | $845,000 | $676,000 |
| WA (Perth) | $695,000 | $556,000 |
| SA (Adelaide) | $760,000 | $608,000 |
| TAS (Hobart) | $685,000 | $548,000 |
| ACT (Canberra) | $880,000 | $704,000 |
| NT (Darwin) | $565,000 | $452,000 |
As at June 2026. Source: capital-city median dwelling values per Cotality Home Value Index, May 2026; loan column derived at 80% LVR (see methodology). National average new loan size roughly $680,000 per ABS Lending Indicators (abs.gov.au), indicative.
Whether you can service a loan of that size is a separate question. Test it at current assessment rates in the borrowing power calculator.
4. Monthly repayments at June 2026 rates
Two rates matter: the roughly 5.90 per cent average on new variable loans, and the 6.55 per cent major-bank average retail variable rate after the May hike. The difference between the two columns below is what shopping the loan is worth. Figures are 30-year principal and interest.
| Loan size | At 5.90% (new-loan average) | At 6.55% (major-bank average) | 2026 hikes added (cumulative) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $500,000 | $2,965 a month | $3,175 a month | +$217 a month |
| $750,000 | $4,450 a month | $4,765 a month | +$326 a month |
| $1,000,000 | $5,930 a month | $6,355 a month | +$435 a month |
As at June 2026. Source: our calculation, standard amortisation formula, 30-year P&I. Rate inputs per RBA Lenders' Interest Rates and major-bank published rate cards. Cumulative-hike column reflects the 75 basis points of 2026 increases against a January 2026 baseline.
5. Stamp duty on a $750,000 home, by state
Stamp duty is the largest single transaction cost in most purchases and the spread between states is wide: $16,780 separates Queensland from South Australia on the same $750,000 established home.
| State | Duty on a $750,000 established home | First home buyer position |
|---|---|---|
| NSW | ~$29,500 | $0 up to $800,000; partial concession to $1,000,000 |
| VIC | ~$33,870 | $0 up to $600,000; partial concession to $750,000 |
| QLD | ~$18,300 | $0 up to $700,000; concessional to $800,000 |
| WA | ~$29,740 | Concessional rates at lower price points |
| SA | ~$35,080 | No concession on established homes; new builds fully exempt, no cap |
As at June 2026. Source: state revenue office transfer duty schedules. Owner-occupier, established home, no concessions applied. TAS, ACT and NT use different scales and concession regimes; run the exact figure in our stamp duty calculator.
For any other price point or state, use the stamp duty calculator, which covers all eight jurisdictions including first home buyer concessions.
6. Market share and the broker channel
The structural story of the 2020s mortgage market: the Big 4 are losing new-customer share while holding the back book, and brokers now carry most of the origination volume.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Big 4 share of new owner-occupier originations | ~65% (down from ~72% mid-2023) |
| Big 4 share of refinance originations | Below 55% and trending down |
| Broker share of new residential mortgages | 76.4% (March 2026 quarter) |
| Digital lender share trajectory | Gaining roughly 1.5 to 2 percentage points a year from the majors |
As at June 2026. Source: APRA monthly authorised deposit-taking institution statistics (apra.gov.au); MFAA Industry Intelligence Service, March 2026 quarter.
7. Serviceability: the numbers a lender tests you at
No lender assesses you at the rate you will pay. APRA's buffer sits on top of the product rate, and the buffer itself is under formal consultation for the first time since it was set in 2021.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| APRA serviceability buffer | 3.0% (consultation on the setting closes 18 July 2026) |
| Assessment rate on a 5.99% new loan | 8.99% |
| Assessment rate on a ~6.40% back-book rate | ~9.40% |
| Debt-to-income ratio treated as high risk | 6x gross household income and above |
| Borrowers unable to refinance under current tests | ~320,000 households (~7% of the variable owner-occupier book) |
As at June 2026. Source: APRA APG 223 prudential guidance (apra.gov.au); trapped-borrower estimate per RFI Group analysis published May 2026.
8. First home buyer schemes snapshot
The federal First Home Guarantee lets eligible buyers purchase with a 5 per cent deposit and no lenders mortgage insurance, with no annual place cap since January 2026. Removing LMI on a $900,000 purchase is worth $30,000 to $45,000 upfront. State First Home Owner Grants stack on top, for new builds in almost every case.
| State | First Home Owner Grant |
|---|---|
| NSW | $10,000, new homes, cap $600,000 |
| VIC | $10,000, new homes, cap $750,000 (regional up to $20,000 periodically) |
| QLD | $30,000, new homes, cap $750,000 |
| WA | $10,000, new homes, cap $750,000 metro / $1,000,000 regional |
| SA | $15,000, new homes, uncapped since June 2024 |
| TAS | $10,000, new homes |
| ACT | No FHOG; income-tested duty concession instead |
| NT | $50,000 HomeGrown Territory plus $10,000 FreshStart, new builds |
As at June 2026. Source: state and territory revenue offices. First Home Guarantee details per the federal Home Guarantee Scheme; price caps apply by city (Sydney $1.5 million in 2026).
9. Property values by capital, May 2026
The Cotality Home Value Index for May 2026 printed +0.2 per cent across the combined capitals, the weakest month of the cycle, with annual growth at 8.1 per cent. The headline hides a two-speed market.
| Market | May 2026 monthly change | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Sydney | -0.7% | Fifth consecutive monthly fall; roughly 4% below the late-2025 peak |
| Melbourne | -0.6% | Sixth consecutive monthly fall; roughly 5% below the late-2025 peak |
| Brisbane | +1.0% | Steady riser; listings at multi-year lows |
| Adelaide | +0.9% | Steady riser; listings at multi-year lows |
| Perth | +2.0% | Strongest capital; annual growth around 22% |
| Combined capitals | +0.2% | Weakest monthly print of the cycle; +8.1% annually |
As at June 2026. Source: Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) Home Value Index, May 2026 release. Combined-capital median dwelling value $1,016,200.
What the divergence means in practice: a Sydney or Melbourne borrower refinancing in 2026 may meet a conservative bank valuation, while a Perth borrower has gained equity without doing anything. The city the property sits in matters more than the national headline. Start with the home loans hub for the borrowing side of that equation.
Methodology and sources
Figures on this page are compiled from public data: RBA statistical tables (including the Lenders' Interest Rates series), ABS Lending Indicators, APRA monthly authorised deposit-taking institution statistics, the Cotality Home Value Index, state revenue office duty schedules, and published lender rate cards. Repayment figures use the standard amortisation formula on 30-year principal-and-interest terms. State-level loan sizes are derived figures: the capital-city median dwelling value multiplied by an assumed 80 per cent LVR, which approximates a typical full-deposit purchase and will overstate loan sizes for buyers with larger deposits and understate them for low-deposit scheme buyers. Where a figure is indicative rather than a published statistic, it is labelled as such in the source line under its table.
This page is reviewed monthly; last reviewed 10 June 2026. Rates and values move, and the figures here reflect the review date, not today.
Citing this page: journalists, researchers and publishers may cite any figure on this page with attribution to Your Finance Guide and a link to this URL. If you need the underlying calculation for any derived figure, the methodology above describes it; the primary sources are the RBA statistical tables, the ABS and APRA.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average mortgage rate in Australia in 2026?
New owner-occupier variable loans are being written at about 5.90 per cent on average as at June 2026, per the RBA Lenders' Interest Rates series. Existing variable borrowers pay about 6.38 per cent on average. Advertised Big 4 variable rates sit at 5.99 to 6.20 per cent, while digital lenders such as Athena, ING and Macquarie advertise 5.74 to 5.99 per cent.
What is the average mortgage size in Australia?
The average new owner-occupier loan is roughly $680,000 nationally as at June 2026, based on ABS Lending Indicators data. It varies sharply by state: an 80 per cent loan against the Sydney median dwelling value of $1,160,000 is $928,000, while the same loan in Perth (median $695,000) is $556,000 and in Darwin (median $565,000) is $452,000.
How much of the mortgage market do the Big 4 banks hold?
The Big 4 write approximately 65 per cent of new owner-occupier originations as at mid-2026, down from approximately 72 per cent in mid-2023, per APRA monthly statistics. In the refinance segment their collective share is below 55 per cent and trending down. Mortgage brokers wrote 76.4 per cent of all new residential mortgages in the March 2026 quarter (MFAA Industry Intelligence Service).
What is the mortgage loyalty tax?
The loyalty tax is the gap between what existing borrowers pay and what new borrowers are offered for the same loan. The RBA Lenders' Interest Rates series puts outstanding variable owner-occupier loans at about 6.38 per cent against about 5.90 per cent on new loans, a 48 basis point gap. On a $750,000 loan that gap costs about $3,600 a year, or $300 a month.
What deposit do first home buyers need in Australia?
The standard requirement is 20 per cent to avoid lenders mortgage insurance. Under the First Home Guarantee, eligible buyers can purchase with a 5 per cent deposit and no LMI, and the scheme has had no annual place cap since January 2026. Removing LMI on a $900,000 purchase is worth $30,000 to $45,000 of upfront cost. Price caps apply by city; Sydney's is $1.5 million in 2026.
Use the numbers
- Refinance calculator: what the loyalty-tax gap is worth on your balance
- Borrowing power calculator: your capacity at the 2026 assessment rates
- Stamp duty calculator: all eight states and territories, with FHB concessions
- Refinancing guide: the process, the costs, the break-even
- Home loans hub: rates, lenders and guides in one place