A new report has uncovered the toughest areas in Australia to rent in, with dozens of suburbs experiencing significant rental stress across the nation.
Real estate analytics outfit Suburbtrends on Thursday released their ‘Rental Pain Index’ for September and the data painted a grim picture for residents currently renting to keep a roof over their head.
Many regions are still facing low vacancy rates, a lack of affordable rental stock and high costs.
“Focusing solely on rent increases can be misleading. Even in areas where price hikes have eased, many renters continue to face severe affordability issues, with rent consuming well over 30% of household income,” Suburbtrends founder Kent Lardner said in a statement.
“This is especially true across numerous LGAs, where vacancy rates remain critically low, exacerbating competition for already scarce rental properties.
“The slowing pace of rental increases does not mean the crisis is over—it simply means the pressure has shifted slightly, but the overall stress on renters remains severe.”
Lardner reiterated the risk of people losing their homes and being displaced was very real.
“Families are being priced out, even in regions where rents aren’t rising as fast. The system continues to fail those who need stable housing the most,” he said.
The report ranked the worst local government areas in each state on the Rental Pain Index, a composite metric which is calculated looking at rent change, advertised rentals, vacancy rates, vacancy change and rent affordability.
In New South Wales, the suburb of Bellingen on the Mid North Coast was ranked as the worst in the state according to its RPI of 94, with a score of 100 denoting the most unfavourable rental conditions.
Close behind was the western Sydney suburb of Fairfield, followed by Cowra in the Central West, Singleton in the Hunter Valley and Lismore in the Northern Rivers which was in 2022 devestated by catastrophic flooding.
In Queensland, the Tablelands LGA topped the list with an RPI of 96, followed by South Burnett, Charters Towers, Southern Downs and North Burnett.
Further south in Victoria renters are struggling the most in the Greater Dandenong area, as well as the Northern Grampians, South Grampians, Swan Hill and Wodonga near the NSW border.
The LGA of Yankalilla in South Australia received the super-high RPI score of 99, followed closely behind by Victor Harbor and Holdfast Bay at 98, Yorke Peninsula at 97 and the Mid Murray at 95.
Scores were similarly high in Western Australia with the Irwin region scoring the worst in the state. Donnybrook-Balingup, Dandaragan, Collie and Bassendean also made the top five.
In Tasmania, conditions for renters in Devonport were ranked the worst, followed by Waratah-Wynyard, Central Coast (Tas), George Town and Brighton.
The suburb of Holder scored the worst in the ACT, while in the Northern Territory renters were struggling the most in Coconut Grove.
The report also touched on a series of solutions to the housing crisis, which included the approach of faith-based groups like Sydney Anglican Property.
SAP has reportedly adopted a strategy “aiming to use under-utilised church properties to address social needs” such as affordable housing, disability services and early learning centres.
“As Australia continues to grapple with rising rents and limited availability, these proposals offer pathways to a more sustainable and equitable housing system,” the report said.
“Addressing the housing crisis will not only improve the lives of renters but also contribute to broader economic stability.”