The Reserve Bank of Australia is odds on to hold interest rates steady, but first home buyers are still about to get a significant leg up.

Economists and bond traders expect the central bank to leave the cash rate at 3.6 per cent when it wraps its latest monetary policy meeting on Tuesday after inflation came in hotter than expected.

A jump in the monthly consumer price index from 2.8 per cent to three per cent in August validated the Reserve Bank's cautious approach in cutting rates, online property marketplace Domain's chief economist Nicola Powell said.

Opposing forces in the economy, including rising inflation, soft economic growth and a robust labour market, were causing the central bank to exercise caution, Chartered Accountants ANZ chief economist Richard Holden said.

It was eve

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