Mortgage holders were disappointed by the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) decision to keep the cash rate on hold this week, but there's a silver lining for property buyers. Aussies had been facing stiffer competition for homes as recent cuts gave more people the confidence to enter the market, pushing property prices higher.

Ashleigh Pullin, 28, and her partner James Mashiter, 37, have been looking to buy their first home since April but have found themselves outbid by predominantly older buyers with more cash at hand. They anticipated more interest rate cuts in July would continue to put upward pressure on property prices.

The Melbourne couple told Yahoo Finance they received pre-approval for a $760,000 home loan with a 5 per cent deposit after spending five years saving up a deposit.

“We’ve put in four offers in total since that time and all of them have been unsuccessful,” Pullin said.

“You get very disappointed because you see the house you put an offer in then goes for another $30,000, $40,000 over, and you’re not even competitive.”

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The couple plan to buy through the federal government’s First Home Guarantee Scheme, which allows eligible people to buy with a 5 per cent deposit and avoid lenders' mortgage insurance.

The scheme means they are subject to an $800,000 property price cap, which they say is also hampering their ability to compete.

Young home buyers find prices keep rising

The couple said they felt pressure to get into the market now before further RBA interest rate cuts push up property prices further. While the RBA held the cash rate steady this week, it signalled rates could be lowered in August should inflation remain on track.

“We were looking at places that were four-bedroom, two-bathroom and two garages and that was comfortably within what we could afford, it was going for $760,000 to $790,000,” Mashiter said.

“Now we’re struggling to find a three-bedroom place with two bathrooms. Anything with two bathrooms has gone over $800,000 every time.

“It’s been a significant change in what you can afford just over the last couple of months.”

Pullin said the couple may need to keep moving further out towards the Yarra Ranges and Dandenong Ranges if prices continue to increase.

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Mortgage brokers see pre-approvals skyrocket

Finance brokers Loan Market reported a 53 per cent year-on-year increase in pre-approval numbers following the RBA’s February and May interest rate cuts.