Most mortgage borrowers stand ready to switch lenders if banks and other lenders increase interest rates independently of the central bank again.

That’s the verdict of 77 per cent of 1,504 Australians surveyed by Auspoll for credit union CUA, and one that indicates the tide may be about to turn for the big four banks.

The major banks grew loans by an annual rate of six per cent over the last three months, according to figures from the prudential regulator.

That outpaced system growth of 3.2 per cent which suggests they are continuing to grab market share from non-bank lenders, Deutsche Bank’s James Freeman told clients.

But the Auspoll findings show borrowers have itchier feet a month after banks led the sector to raise interest rates on home loans and some deposit products independently of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA).

Eighty-one per cent of mortgage holders will switch or consider switching lenders if they found one with a more competitive mortgage rate, CUA said.

Interest rates are likely to increase over the next three months, 46 per cent of respondents said.

An AAP survey of 13 economists expects the RBA to keep the cash rate on hold at 4.25 per cent when it meets next Tuesday.

Banks have argued their cost of funds is now permanently higher that before the global financial crisis, and that this justifies oversized interest rate rises imposed on borrowers.

They rely on domestic and international wholesale credit markets to fund about 40 per cent of their loan books.

Institutional investors prefer to buy bonds from corporations than banks and other financial institutions at the moment, and they will only buy from financials at a higher margin, CBA’s institutional banking and markets group executive, Ian Saines, told reporters.