Key Points
- Single-income households find renting the toughest, with those on a pension or JobSeeker payments the worst off.
- Regional Queensland is the least affordable place to rent, while Melbourne tops the list for affordability.
- NSW had the sharpest decline in affordability, now at 29 per cent of household income.
Rental affordability for Australians in every state has gone from bad to worse as price hikes spread from the cities to the regions.
Annual rental affordability data by National Shelter and SGS Economics & Planning found affordability plummeted in every city except Canberra and Hobart over the last 12 months.
Renters in regional Queensland were hardest hit as housing affordability dropped to a nationwide low, with tenants in the Sunshine State now paying at least 30 per cent of their income on rent, the standard threshold for rental stress.
Meanwhile, NSW had the sharpest decline in affordability, now at 29 per cent of household income. The state also contains six of the top ten most unaffordable postcodes.
The data also showed what different households could afford across the country.
Single people on JobSeeker are locked out of all capital areas, with a one-bedroom rental requiring 75 per cent of their income and 53 per cent in the cheapest regional areas.
Pensioners on a single income also spend at least 50 per cent of their income on rent across the capital cities, with Hobart and Adelaide the exception.
According to the data, dual-income couples with children spend the least amount of their total household spend on rent across capital areas.
So how financially difficult is renting in each state? And which postcodes should you avoid if you're looking for lower prices?
Watch this image to see how housing affordability in your state capital compares to other major cities and the ACT. Source: SBS News
New South Wales
Six of the most pricey postcodes in the nation are located in the harbour city and all inner-city areas are deemed unaffordable or extremely unaffordable, with the lowest affordability since 2017.
These postcodes are Seaforth, Northbridge, Belrose, Frenchs Forest, Warriewood and Avalon/Bilgola.
The average renting household must live 15-20 km from the city to find an affordable home.
Single-income households on JobSeeker cannot afford a home, as paying the rent requires 137 per cent of their income.
Rentals in regional parts of the state are on the brink of being deemed unaffordable, with pressures felt most along the coastline, as well as in areas such as Bathurst, Maitland and Waggga Wagga.
Victoria
Melbourne is the most affordable capital city across Australia, despite rents rising by 16 per cent in the last 12 months.
Rentals located 15 km from the Melbourne CBD are deemed affordable, while coastal suburbs such as Brighton, Hampton and Beaumaris remain the least affordable areas.
Across Victoria's regional areas, affordability has dropped, with Torquay and Apollo Bay becoming severely unaffordable since the pandemic, while Kerang, Nhil and Numurka are best places to rent.
Queensland
Across greater Brisbane, most suburbs have fallen one to two categories in affordability, with no affordable areas remaining.
Areas on the outskirts of the city — including Woodford, Rosewood, Sandstone Point and Caboolture — experienced a 20 per cent drop in affordability.
Regional Queensland is the most unaffordable place to rent, in terms of rent as a proportion of income. This is due to rents being similar to Brisbane, while wages are lower.
Eumundi made the top ten most unaffordable suburbs, with Tewantin, Cooroy and Noosa Heads all severely unaffordable.
South Australia
A previously affordable corridor from Bellevue Heights to Gillman adjacent to the CBD has disappeared, with most renters having to look 30 km from the CBD to find affordable housing.
Rents in the state's regions jumped 12.9 per cent in the past 12 months but such areas still offer the cheapest median rent anywhere in the nation.
Western Australia
Rents in Greater Perth have jumped 52.4 per cent since mid-2020, making the city moderately unaffordable for the first time since 2016. Some suburbs still offer acceptable rents in the CBD and north towards Marangaroo.
Most regional areas offer acceptable to very affordable rent but there is significant variation between regional centres and remote areas.
Tasmania
The median rental rate in the Apple Isle has grown 60 per cent since 2016. Hobart rental prices are now almost equal to Melbourne, even though the average rental household income is 21 per cent lower.
Greater Hobart is one of two regions where affordability has improved across the nation.
However, in regional areas affordability is at a historic low. The most affordable areas are in the state's northwest, excluding Burnie and Devonport.
