Fixed mortgage rates have been edging higher while variable rate changes remain uneven, squeezing borrowing capacity for first-home buyers and property investors alike. Canstar's latest Weekly Rate Wrap-up points to a thinner pool of sharp deals and a more challenging environment for refinancing and new lending. The pressure is most visible at the lower end of the market. There are now 89 home loan rates below 5.75% on Canstar's database, down from 101 the week before, reducing the chances of substantially cutting repayments by switching.

On fixed loans, lenders are still moving. Two lenders increased 18 owner-occupier and investor variable rates by an average of 0.25%, while Qantas Money cut four investor variable rates by 0.05%. More significantly, 18 lenders lifted 490 owner-occupier and investor fixed rates, with an average rise of 0.32%. "The fixed rate hikes continue to roll in the door, albeit at a slower pace," Canstar data insights director Sally Tindall said.

Beyond headline mortgage rates, the broader backdrop is unsettled. Unemployment is steady at 4.3%, but expectations are for the jobless rate to drift higher later in the year.

At the same time, "Consumer confidence has fallen off a cliff since the start of the war and this is what the RBA will be most wary of, with the latest Westpac-Melbourne Institute data recording the biggest monthly decline since the onset of the COVID pandemic," Tindall said.

With an already split RBA Board, brokers should prepare clients for shifting mortgage options and ensure strategies for both further rate rises and softer labour market conditions are front of mind.