​Monday and Tuesday this week, I had the privilege of sitting alongside some absolutely inspirational women and men of the finance industry, as part of the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) Opportunities for Women's panel meeting and lunch launch, presented by key lead researcher Jane Counsel. 
 
The initiative seeks to deliver findings, consider actions and future initiatives for the finance industry, and particularly targeting inclusion and diversity in the finance industry, particularly around that of the participation of women.
 
Questions discussed at length, were not limited to retention of women in the sector, but also the support of, and attracting more women to finance, and understanding the challenges that women face.
 
Notable that while industry participation overall is on the rise, female representation has decreased from 28% to 25% in recent years, and understanding why, and what can be done to counter this trend, is critical to long term success.
 
Aside from meeting some wonderful members of the broader community, including lender, and aggregator representation at the launch, it was also a pleasure to meet AFLW player Sabrina Frederick, who shared her story and experience, as a professional AFL player, who was wonderfully inspiring and a joy to listen to.
 
Much thanks must go to Stephen Hale, Usha Dean & Mike Felton, along with the ever insightful, supportive and inspirational Jane Counsel, along with all of the other participants who welcomed me and my contributions so warmly.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) increased the official cash rate by 25 basis points to 0.35% at today’s board meeting.
 
This is the first cash rate hike in more than a decade and comes after core inflation grew by 3.7% over the year to March – well above the RBA's 2-3% target.

With the latest inflation data, it shows that Australia had recorded the highest quarterly and annual increase in more than two decades.

The last time the RBA increased interest rates was in November 2010. The official cash rate has been at a record low of 0.1 per cent since November 2020.

Mortgage holders have been warned to prepare for a double rate rise. The cash rate is largely expected to jump by 1 per cent by the end of this year and reach 1.25 per cent next year.

Lenders are likely to lift mortgage rates in line with the cash rate increase, which may result in big changes to variable home loan repayments.

Reach out so we can review your home loan.