As was widely expected, the Reserve Bank of Australia held interest rates at the record low of 1.5% yesterday.
Unfortunately for savers I think this will remain the case at least until the end of the year. This would mean that high interest savings accounts and term deposits are unlikely to provide meaningful interest rates for some time to come.
Because of this I think investors would be better off skipping savings accounts and investing in some quality dividend shares with big yields. Two which I would consider today are as follows:
The Japara Healthcare Ltd (ASX: JHC) share price has tumbled by almost one-third in the last 12 months. Concerns over regulatory changes in the aged care sector and the impact they will have on the company were largely behind the drop.
But with its shares now changing hands at under 15x trailing earnings and providing a fully franked 5.5% dividend, I feel Japara offers investors a compelling risk/reward. Especially with demand for its rooms expected to grow substantially over the next decade due to Australia's ageing population.
Although the WAM Capital Limited (ASX: WAM) share price recently hit an all-time high of $2.57, it still provides investors with a market-beating trailing fully franked 5.8% dividend. I have been very impressed with the way this listed investment company has been able to consistently outperform the market in recent years.
I feel confident its talented team will continue to do the same for the foreseeable future, allowing the company to keep growing its dividend further. WAM Capital's shares go ex-dividend on April 13, so it's not too late to snap it up today.
