Barefoot Investor Scott Pape unleashes at the Reserve Bank for lowering interest rates

Daily Mail​

20-05-2025

The Barefoot Investor has taken a swipe at the Reserve Bank of Australia, claiming young people should be 'p**sed off' the bank decided to cut the cash rate because it would cause house prices to surge.
On Tuesday afternoon, the RBA eased the cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.85 per cent - a low which has not been seen since June 2023.
Scott Pape said while the cash rate cut would alleviate mortgage repayments for millions of Aussies it would have a negative impact on young people trying to get into the property market.
Mr Pape said young Aussies should be 'pissed' at the decision as it means property prices would inevitably increase.
'If I was a young person right now I would be pretty pissed off,' Mr Pape told news.com.au.
'Every time a young person gets close, it just keeps getting more expensive.'
Mr Pape also took aim at the Albanese government for introducing a five per cent deposit scheme for first-home buyers,' labelling the policy as 'totally stupid'.
Experts have warned the policy, which is set to come into effect from January 1, 2026, would ultimately push house prices up.
'People shouldn't be buying a home in one of the most expensive cities in the world if they can't afford it,' Mr Pape said.
'I don't understand how a responsible government can stand by and say this is a good thing.'
SQM Research Managing Director Louis Christopher said he expects property prices to rise from now and into 2026, with a 10 per cent increase by the end of the year.
Mr Christopher said auction clearance rates would skyrocket due to the rate cut and advised first-home buyers to try and enter the market before the end of 2025.
'First home buyers are in a better buying position compared to six months ago,' Mr Christopher said.
'Their purchasing and borrowing power has increased. However, if I am right about price rises, they will need to move quickly, otherwise they will be back to square one on affordability.'
An owner-occupier borrower with an average $660,000 mortgage would save $107 on their monthly repayments with the latest rate cut, as typical variable home loan rates with the major banks fell under six per cent.
ANZ became the first of the Big Four banks to announce it would match the RBA's latest rate cut with a 25 basis point cut to its variable rates.
This means its online-only rate is falling to 5.59 per cent on May 30.
Westpac followed seven minutes later, matching ANZ's equally lowest online-only mortgage rate but from June 3.
The Commonwealth Bank matched its competitors shortly after, with borrowers getting relief on May 30.
Australia's biggest home lender updated its forecasts to have more rate cuts in August and November, with relief at the RBA's next meeting in July a 'live' possibility.
NAB's lowest online-only rate is falling to 5.94 per cent on May 30, but it's available for borrowers with a small five per cent deposit.
Ms Bullock acknowledged the 13 rate rises in 2022 and 2023 were challenging for borrowers, who copped the most aggressive pace of monetary policy tightening since the late 1980s.
'I know this period of relatively high interest rates has been and continues to be challenging for many households and businesses but it was essential that we brought inflation down,' Ms Bullock said.
The RBA declined to suggest more rate cuts were coming but left the door open for further relief as inflation is expected to fall into the target band.
'Inflation has fallen substantially since the peak in 2022, as higher interest rates have been working to bring aggregate demand and supply closer towards balance,' RBA said.