You can watch the YouTube video here.

Using a simple estimate based on a steady $800,000 mortgage balance, a 1.25 percentage point rate rise adds $10,000 a year in interest.

That’s a big hit to the household budget. 

It can also put bigger decisions on the table, like whether to sell an investment property or extend a loan term. 

🛋️ In Episode 623 of The Property Couch, Ben is joined by Couch Crew members Luke Oxenham and Ben Thompson to discuss the numbers they’d look at before making those life-changing calls. 

Together, we cover household expenses, cash buffers, offset accounts and the trade-off between lower minimum repayments today and more interest over time. Plus, Luke shares how he’s thinking about his own mortgage while preparing for a home upgrade. 

🎧 If your savings buffer is shrinking or you’re wondering whether your home loan still fits your plans, listen now!

 

Free Stuff Mentioned

🎥 Free Webinar Replays
Where does your money go each month? Watch How to Make Your Money Work Harder for practical ways to find more breathing room in your budget.
👉 Watch the free replay and grab the slides 

Moorr Features:
🏦 Open Banking
Ever opened three banking apps just to see where your money went? Open Banking brings all your transactions together inside Moorr.
👉 Join the Open Banking waitlist 🎯

Dynamic MyGoals
A home upgrade, a holiday or a bigger cash buffer. Which could you afford first? See how moving one goal forward changes the timing of the others.
👉 See which goals you can afford in Moorr 

💸 Money Stretch
If your income dropped tomorrow, how many months would your savings cover? Money Stretch helps you put a number on it.
👉 Test how long your cash buffer could last 

📘 Make Money Simple Again
Curious about the seven-day float Ben Thompson swears by? The free Money SMARTS ebook shows you how to set up a weekly spending allowance you can keep track of.
👉 Get the free ebook in Moorr’s Knowledge Centre 

 

Timestamps

  • 0:00 – 623 | Mortgage Squeeze? How to Find Breathing Room in Your Budget 
  • 1:28 – Free Webinar Replays & What’s New in Moorr 
  • 4:59 – Same Lifestyle. Less Money. 
  • 9:28 – The Silent Killer in Your Budget 
  • 11:36 – The Spending You Barely Notice 
  • 15:46 – The Seven-Day Float 
  • 18:09 – The $10,000 Mortgage Squeeze 
  • 19:59 – Would You Sell Before Checking Your Bills? 
  • 22:48 – Just Breathe Before You Buy or Sell 
  • 23:46 – How Long Could Your Cash Buffer Last? 
  • 27:48 – The Sunday Money Audit 
  • 31:48 – When Selling Could Make Sense 
  • 33:51 – What Does GTA Have to Do With Your Money? 
  • 38:08 – Could a Longer Mortgage Buy You Time? 
  • 41:08 – Lower Repayments. What’s the Catch? 
  • 42:56 – Is Your Cash Sitting in the Right Account? 
  • 45:58 – Even BK Has Cash to Round Up 
  • 48:01 – Every Day in Offset Counts 
  • 48:27 – Your Next Move to Get Money Fit