Mortgage Stress Test (Layered Scenarios)
Most missed mortgage payments in Australia trace back to a stack of events, not a single rate rise. Layer up a rate change, parental leave, a job loss or a medical event and see whether your buffer and income can absorb the combination over the next 5 years.
Your household
Groceries, utilities, transport. Excludes mortgage repayments, which come from the loan inputs below.
Loan and buffer
Cash savings on hand for emergencies.
Life events to stack
Turn on any combination. The chart and buffer update for the full mix, not one event at a time.
Lifts the mortgage rate from a chosen month onward, modelling an RBA hiking cycle.
Drops one partner's income across paid then unpaid leave, then adds childcare on return.
Cuts one partner's income to zero for a chosen number of months before recovery.
Applies an upfront out-of-pocket cost plus optional ongoing monthly expense.
Starting buffer this scenario needs
$0
On these inputs, the household stays cashflow-positive for the full 5-year horizon. This scenario is survivable without missing a payment. Turn on life events to stack them.
- Your starting buffer
- $15,000
- Shortfall
- $0
- Cash runs out
- Not in 5 years
Scenario survives the 5-year horizon.
Monthly cashflow over 5 years
Your scenario with the events you turned on, the same household without any stressors, and the running cash buffer.
Left over each month
Take-home pay minus mortgage repayments and living costs.
Running cash buffer
Your starting buffer plus each month's cashflow with the selected events.
The required buffer is the smallest starting cash that keeps cumulative cashflow above zero in every month of the 5-year horizon, and includes a 10% safety margin on the worst cumulative shortfall. The simulation is illustrative, not a forecast. Data as of May 2026.
Keep going
Isolate the rate piece, check readiness, or compare loan shapes.
Layered stress testing, explained
For illustration only. This tool does not constitute personal financial advice. Grant amounts, caps, and eligibility rules may change. Federal scheme caps shown are for capital city/regional centres and may differ for other areas. Always verify with your state revenue office and Housing Australia, and consider seeking independent financial advice before making decisions.