Almost one in three Australians are struggling to make ends meet, as cost-of-living pressures push more people to renegotiate bills, cut back on groceries and access their superannuation early. And one in five hit up friends or family as times tighten.
About 30 per cent of Australian adults find it difficult or very difficult to get by on their current income, according to a quarterly poll by the Australian National University.
Borrowers have been hit with 12 interest rate rises since May 2022 as the RBA tries to get on top of the most acute inflation outbreak in decades.
Financial stress is on the rise, with two-fifths of renters finding it difficult or very difficult to get by on present income amid a nationwide surge in rents.
But the biggest increase in stress over the past year was among people with a mortgage, who have borne the brunt of the fastest interest rate tightening cycle in a generation. About three in 10 borrowers are finding it tough.
None of this should be a surprise to followers of this channel, as I have been reporting the steady rise in cash flow stress in recent times, to new highs. My latest data to end August will be out in the next few days, and the trends continue to deteriorate.
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