Mortgage woes grow over rate-hike blow

Recent bank survey finds that 2 in 5 Singaporeans face difficulties in paying their home loans a situation that could worsen as interest rates rise

- KAREYST LIN

Ms Nicole Ho, 32, who works as a freelance web designer, is stressed. Her monthly home loan payments have been increasing, even as she grapples with inflation and higher prices.

Ms Ho, who asked that her real name not be used, moved into her five-room Housing Board resale flat in Boon Keng with her husband in 2017. Then, the newlyweds were paying about $1,900 a month to service their mortgage using their CPF savings and cash.

Today, that figure has soared to over $2,900.

"We refinanced our home loan (with our bank) in October this year, and the interest rate increased from 2.9 per cent to 4.4 per cent," Ms Ho explains. "Before this, the amount that we were paying was in the low $2,000s." Mortgage rates in Singapore have been rising in line with global interest rates, with fixed home loan rates offered by local banks reaching up to 4.5 per cent.

Increased financial stress

Ms Ho and her husband are not the only ones facing financial woes. Singaporeans surveyed in the latest OCBC Financial Wellness Index scored an average of 61 out of 100 in terms of financial wellness down from last year’s 62.