‘Just three properties’: Report paints bleak picture of Aus rental market

There is not a single property across Australia – or even a room in a shared house – that’s affordable for someone on youth allowance, according to a new report from support organisation Anglicare Australia.

And just three properties were deemed affordable for those on a JobSeeker allowance.

The 2025 Rental Affordability Snapshot, released this week, surveyed 51,238 rental listings across Australia on March 15, with the result painting a bleak picture.

Of the rental listings surveyed across all states and territories, only 352 homes (0.7 per cent) were affordable for a person earning a full-time minimum wage, while just 165 rentals (0.3 per cent) were affordable for a person on the Age Pension.

The situation got even more dire for a person on the Disability Support Pension, with just 28 rentals (0.1 per cent) deemed affordable.

A person on JobSeeker, meanwhile, had the choice of just three rentals, while not a single rental was affordable for a person on Youth Allowance.

Banks, Bennelong, Bradfield and Cook in New South Wales topped the list of Australia’s least affordable suburbs, according to the data with Goldstein in Victoria round out the top five.

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Source: Anglicare Australia

With the 2025 Federal Election only days away, Anglicare Australia Executive Director Kasy Chambers said all parties and candidates needed to act on housing affordability.

“Australia’s housing crisis is the worst it has ever been,” she said.

“We keep hearing that this election is about living costs, but housing is the biggest cost facing Australians.

“The housing crisis is climbing the income ladder, and people on lowest incomes don’t stand a chance.”

Ms Chambers said less than 1 per cent of rentals were currently affordable for a full-time worker on the minimum wage.

According to PropTrack, the national median rental price for a house now sits at $650 a week and at $640 for a unit.

By comparison, the maximum fortnightly Youth Allowance for a person over 18 without kids is $663.30 and $836.60 for a person with children.

MORE NEWS: The 43 Aussie suburbs where you can buy a home for under $400k

Source: Anglicare Australia

“Across the country, there are 74 electorates without a single affordable rental for someone on the minimum wage,” Ms Chambers said.

“Voters are desperate for action. Instead, parties are promising more of the same. At best they are overlooking those who need the most help, and at worst, they are making promises that could overheat the market and push costs up.”

Ms Chambers said that the Government must step up instead of leaving housing to the private sector.

“The Government spends eight times as much propping up private investors as it does on building homes for people who need them. This approach is wrong, and it’s supercharging rents and house prices.

“These results show that housing cannot be left to the private sector. We’re calling on the next parliament to ensure that rentals are affordable by building rentals people can afford, and by fixing Australia’s unfair tax system.

“If the next parliament fails to take action, this crisis will only get worse.”

Source: Anglicare Australia

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