Posted by 
Home ownership is falling further out of reach for Australians after today's interest rates increase, with a new survey finding the income required to buy the average house is far more than most workers earn.
According to Finder, the minimum wage required to comfortably afford a mortgage for the average house – which costs $926,899 – with the cash rate now at 4.35 per cent is $182,000.
That's almost three times the median income which, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, was $65,000 last year.
READ MORE: RBA hits borrowers with Melbourne Cup Day rate rise
The required salary falls to just under $130,000 to buy the average $659,130 apartment, still well out of reach for a single-income household.
Today's rate rise means borrowers with a $590,000 mortgage will be paying an extra $1345 a month compared to April last year.
"That's a huge amount of extra money to be spending on your mortgage, especially when the cost of almost everything else is also going up," Graham Cooke, Finder's head of consumer research, said, adding mortgage holders were "already on the ropes".
While the increase was largely expected, it has led to significant criticism due to the disproportionate impact it will have on low-income earners.
"The RBA's decision to lift the cash rate to 4.35 per cent will hurt people with low incomes the most," Australian Council of Social Service CEO Cassandra Goldie said.
"The worthy goal of reducing inflation must not come at the expense of jobs and incomes…
"Instead of relying solely on the blunt tool of rate rises, the government must step in to aid the RBA with measures to tackle inflation at its roots.
"This should include working with states and territories to curb soaring rents and additional measures to bring down energy bills for those who can least afford it."
Higher-than-expected inflation figures late last month had economists tipping today's rates rise, but subsequent data revealed petrol prices – which are set internationally and not impacted by interest rates – and increasing mortgages were driving the higher cost of living.
READ MORE: WeWork files for bankruptcy protections in US
The Housing Industry Association said the RBA should have waited longer before pulling the trigger on its 13th hike since last May, saying economic growth was already slowing.
"The fastest increase in the cash rate in a generation is the primary cause of these poor results in indicators of future growth," chief economist Tim Reardon said.
"The RBA's monetary policy tightening is yet to adversely impact the lagging indicators of economic activity like unemployment or inflation.
"There were very long lags in this cycle due to the strength of the economy at the start of the RBA's rate rising cycle in the first half of 2022."
READ MORE: The sneaky second way rate rises are costing you in the long run
Reardon said the decision would lead to fewer homes being built, despite the need for more supply amid the housing crisis.
"Today's rate rise is unnecessary and will cause further contraction in new home building, constraining the supply of new homes," he said.
And that, he said, would make the average mortgage even less affordable.
