How higher interest rates are forcing people to sell their homes | The Business | ABC News

While most borrowers on fixed rate loans have already transitioned to much higher variable rates, many people have been able to escape the worst of the mortgage cliff by selling up before they fall behind on their repayments.
A booming property market has also helped them get out of their home loans without incurring a loss and kept mortgage defaults low.
But the number of borrowers, who are at least 30 or 90 days behind on their repayments is ticking up.
The number of properties changing hands within the past three years has surged to its highest level in at least a decade.
ANZ has three in 1,000 customers in mortgage hardship. People also are tend to struggle with other bills, like council rates, electricity, gas and water bills, phone bills, and other debts, like credit cards and personal loans, before they miss their mortgage repayments.
The comparison website Finder surveyed more than 1,000 people and found about one in five have switched to making 'interest only' repayments in the past couple of years to cope with higher interest rates.
S&P Global Ratings has identified parts of Melbourne and Sydney with some of the highest levels of mortgage stress.
Andy Barrows sold his home in the nation's most expensive city after his mortgage repayments rose substantially.
He and his wife bought in 2020 and just as they both stopped working full-time, the Reserve Bank started lifting interest rates in May 2022.
#ABCBusiness
Subscribe: ab.co/1svxLVE
Read more here:
ABC News provides around the clock coverage of news events as they break in Australia and abroad. It's news when you want it, from Australia's most trusted news organisation.
For more from ABC News, click here: ab.co/2kxYCZY
Watch more ABC News content ad-free on ABC iview: ab.co/2OB7Mk1
Go deeper on our ABC News In-depth channel: ab.co/2lNeBn2
Like ABC News on Facebook: / abcnews.au
Follow ABC News on Instagram: / abcnews_au
Follow ABC News on X (Twitter): / abcnews
Note: In most cases, our captions are auto-generated.
#ABCNews #ABCNewsAustralia