Renting in Australia: It’s a Crisis
I’m just going to say it: Renting in Australia can be a roller coaster made of misery. Not every house allows pets, you can’t put nails in your walls, and it’s always a bit scary when your lease is up.
Moreover, in recent memory, renting has somehow got even worse. This is because:
- In 2023, the rental market is super competitive. And, when there are too many renters fighting over not enough homes, the cost of renting gets higher.
- The Reserve Bank of Australia has kept increasing the amount of cash that homeowners have to spend on their mortgages. And, if a homeowner’s property is on the rental market, they can just pass on these increases to their tenant.
The severity of this situation can be demonstrated in how some suburban rentals have skyrocketed in price. According to PropTrack, a whack of regional houses across Western Australia, South Australia, and Queensland have risen in price by over 40% in just the last 12 months.
PropTrack has also determined which ten Australian towns and villages have experienced the biggest house price increases. And this rental info is as follows:
|
Town |
State | Current Median Rental Price | Percentage Markup in the Last 12 Months |
| Katanning |
Western Australia |
$375 |
47% |
| Port Broughton | South Australia | $340 |
43% |
|
Gatton |
Queensland | $460 | 41% |
| Elliott Heads | Queensland | $480 |
41% |
|
Orbost |
Victoria | $340 | 40% |
|
Stanwell Park |
New South Wales | $910 |
39% |
| Catherine Hill Bay | NSW | $715 |
38% |
|
Wamuran |
Queensland | $660 | 35% |
|
Rochester |
Victoria |
$455 |
35% |
| Wongan Hills | Western Australia | $315 |
35% |
Renting in Australia: It’s Not Getting Better
It’s worth emphasising that it’s not just towns like Katanning and Port Broughton that have munted rental prices. Everywhere is getting screwed and will likely continue to get screwed.
A pair of St George Bank economists, Pat Bustamante and Jameson Coombs, have stated that in 2022, the cost of renting in Australia increased by 10%. Additionally, they’ve predicted that through 2023, it will rise by another 11.5%. If Bustamante and Coombs are correct, this means that household rental bills will increase in total by $10 billion.
“This is on top of the $5 billion increase in households’ 2022 rent bill. This is significant,” said the economists.
“A $10 billion increase in the rent bill of households is equivalent to an average 20% increase in housing costs. These households will likely be required to pull back on spending to meet the higher rental costs. If this occurs, nominal household consumption could be up to 1% lower in 2023 alone.”
Buying in Australia: Not a Picnic
Hey, do you want some more troubling news? Are you sure?
Okay then: So, buying a home in Australia can also be a difficult task. This is because new listings in cities such as Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney have had a significant drop-off in 2023. As it stands, there are not enough homes for people who want to buy them.
As CoreLogic’s Research Director, Tim Lawless, said, “We are seeing homeowners just waiting on the sidelines and that’s also accompanied by less buying activity.”
Furthermore, PEXA’s CEO, Glenn King, has stated that this lack of listings creates awful situations, as some folks are trapped in rubbish living arrangements.
King said, “Many first home buyers, who are forced to buy far from the centre of cities, are denied the opportunities that may increase their quality of life, including access to the higher paying jobs that are in the central city and employment hubs.”
If there was ever a time for all levels of government to step in and fix this housing crisis, it’s now. Please and thank you, mates.
Related: Australian Country Towns Are Suffering a Housing Crisis
Related: More People Than Ever Reckon They’ll Never Own a Home But Are They Right?
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