This page tracks the official cash rate and what rate changes mean for your home loan. We update it after each Reserve Bank decision, so it is the one link worth bookmarking rather than hunting through old announcements.
Where the cash rate sits now
- Official cash rate: 4.35%
- Last decision: held at the June 2026 meeting, effective 17 June 2026
- Next decision: 11 August 2026
The Reserve Bank raised the cash rate three times through the first half of 2026 before pausing in June. Inflation remains above the Reserve Bank’s target band, which is the main thing the Board is watching.
What a cash rate change means for your loan
A change to the official cash rate does not automatically change your home loan rate. Lenders set their own rates and decide separately whether to pass a movement on, in full, in part, or not at all. They also choose their own effective date, which is usually a few weeks after the announcement.
If you are on a fixed rate, nothing changes until your fixed period ends. If you are on a variable rate, your lender will write to you with any change and when it takes effect.
Will my repayments change automatically?
It depends on how your direct debit is set up.
- Direct debit set to the minimum repayment: this adjusts on its own.
- Direct debit set to a fixed amount you nominated: this keeps taking the same amount. If rates rose, you may need to increase it. If rates fell, you can leave it and pay your loan down faster.
- Paying manually: you need to adjust the amount yourself.
Your exact new repayment is confirmed once the change takes effect, not on the day of the announcement.
If you have a Well Money managed loan
Each funder confirms its own decision after a Reserve Bank announcement. You will get a letter setting out any change to your rate and the date it applies from, sent to your nominated postal or email address.
Rate decisions for existing customers can differ from the rates advertised to new customers. If you want to know where your loan sits against what is currently available, that is worth a conversation rather than a guess.
If rates are moving against you
A rising rate environment is the point at which the gap between what existing customers pay and what new customers are offered tends to widen. It is worth checking rather than assuming your rate is still competitive.
- Why rates differ for new and existing customers
- What it costs to refinance
- Why the rate on its own is not the whole picture
- What to do if you are struggling with repayments