According to the most recent Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) Weekly, Australia's oldest bank expects the Reserve Bank to put rates on hold at the record low of 1.5% until at least December 2018.
If this happens it wouldn't be great news for savers. At the moment term deposits and high interest savings accounts offer just paltry interest rates and that looks unlikely to change for some time to come as far as Westpac is concerned.
In light of this I think investors should skip savings accounts and look to the share market, especially with there being so many high quality dividend shares to choose from. Here are three I think are worth considering:
Cedar Woods Properties Limited (ASX: CWP)
This leading property developer has grown its dividend by an average of 5.9% per year for the last 10 years, whilst paying out approximately 50% of its earnings. This bodes well for investors considering that management recently revised upwards its full-year profit guidance to a record $45 million. This strong performance has been driven by record pre-sales of $274 million, with the majority expected to settle in FY 2017. Cedar Woods Properties provides a trailing fully franked 5% dividend at present.
Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT)
At the current share price this leading travel agent provides investors with a trailing fully franked 4.8% dividend. Although Flight Centre's recent performance may have disappointed many investors, I believe investments that the travel agent has made in the lucrative China and India markets has positioned it for a return to solid long-term growth. With its shares down sharply over the last 12 months, I think Flight Centre could deliver solid returns over the next couple of years on top of its market-beating dividend.
Retail Food Group Limited (ASX: RFG)
Retail Food Group is the master franchisor of popular brands including Gloria Jean's and Donut King. With a decade of successive dividend increases behind it, I believe the company is deservedly known as one of the best dividend shares on the Australian share market. At present the company's shares provide a trailing fully franked 5.5% dividend. But as generous as this yield is, I believe its successful international expansion could allow it to grow its dividend even further over the next few years.
