Suburbtrends’ Rent Pain Index paints grim picture for SA suburbs and towns

SA tenants are among those being hit hardest by the country’s rental crisis, new data reveals. Search our interactive list to see how your area fares.

Tenants in all but 15 South Australian suburbs and towns are experiencing severe rent stress, with new data showing some are forking out more than 40 per cent of their income to pay rent.

Suburbtrends has exclusively revealed the full dataset for its Rent Pain Index, which measures the financial strain of renting, and it paints a grim picture for SA.

Suburbtrends founder Kent Lardner said the analysis compared several factors, including the percentage of advertised rentals, vacancy rates, average 12-month rental increases and average rent as a percentage of income.

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New data reveals tenants in all but 15 SA areas are experiencing severe rent stress. Picture: supplied.

“Generally, 50 is the value for the pain score where I see things getting pretty bad for renters,” he said.

Of the 157 SA areas recorded in the analysis, 142 had a rent pain score of 50 or more.

Strathalbyn topped the list both for the state and nationally with 91, followed by Wallaroo and Elizabeth (both 89) then Christie Downs and Smithfield-Elizabeth North (both 86).

In Christie Downs and Victor Harbor, 43 per cent of tenants’ incomes were going towards rent.

“Adelaide, long considered a sanctuary of affordability in both the rental and buying markets, seems to be undergoing a seismic shift,” Mr Lardner said.

“What was once a haven for locals seeking affordable living options is rapidly transforming, challenging the very idea of ‘affordable Adelaide’.

“It’s a significant change that could have profound implications for the city’s residents.”

Ray White SA chief executive Matt Lindblom said rent pain across the state had been going on for a long time.

The Rent Pain Index compares a range of factors to measure the financial strain of renting. Picture: supplied.

“It’s just demand, there’s so much demand,” he said.

“There are more people needing and looking for housing than there are (houses) being put up for rent and sale, and just being built.”

He said there was less demand for investment properties to be built with interest rates climbing, while migration post Covid was further limiting supply.

“Yes, it will be fixed but it just takes time,” Mr Lindblom said.

Turner Real Estate chief executive Emma Slape said many people were being forced to change the way they lived because their budgets were getting tighter with cost of living increases.

“We are starting to see more people moving back home with their parents, some people were talking about renting out a room,” she said.

“There are so many parts to the puzzle but increasing supply is the only solution.”

SA tenants were among those being hit hardest by the country’s rental crisis, with the data showing the state recorded the second highest rent pain index at 83.27. It was just behind Queensland, which recorded a score of 83.69.

SA tenants are among those being hit hardest by the country’s rental crisis, according to the figures. Picture: supplied.