Revealed: Sydney’s most affordable suburbs to rent

Finding a rental property that won’t break the bank is a challenge for many Sydney workers. Here is a list of the 20 most affordable suburbs within travelling distance to Sydney’s CBD.

A lot has been made about how expensive it is to rent in Sydney, but if you know where to look there is value to be had within a short distance of the CBD.

RentRabbit.com.au conducted research identifying the city’s 20 cheapest suburbs to rent, all located within 35km of Sydney’s CBD.

They worked out the median price of each suburb and found five suburbs in the top 20 were located in the Blacktown Council area, with both Seven Hills and Blacktown ranking equal top for most affordable rental housing.

The Paramatta region also featured heavily in the list, with the suburbs of Lidcombe, Westmead, North Parramatta, Greystanes and Rosehill all in the top 20.

Residential property for lease in Lidcombe. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Damian Shaw

Ben Petty, CEO of RentRabbit.com.au, spoke on why these suburbs are more affordable to rent.

“RentRabbit.com.au’s data shows that although these suburbs haven’t been immune to low vacancy rates, they’ve traditionally been more stable and affordable when it comes to rental increases and they’re proving that now in comparison to the rest of the state,” he said.

“These conditions make renting here favourable right now. Demand is still strong so it’s a little early to tell if these suburbs will hold, but the data suggests vacancy rates and prices to settle in the next quarter.”

Data collected on western Sydney suburbs by RentalRabbit.com.au also shows that vacancy rates have greatly reduced, with the western Sydney suburbs of Blacktown, Seven Hills, Rooty Hill, Riverstone, Quakers Hill, Oakhurst and South Penrith, who all feature in the top 20 most affordable rental suburbs, seeing a significant decrease in vacancy rates compared to this time last year.

Blacktown

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

3%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

0.7%

Seven Hills

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

2.5%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

0.8%

Rooty Hill

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

2.8%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

0.8%

Riverstone

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

4.8%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

1.1%

Quakers Hill

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

2.5%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

0.5%

Oakhurst

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

2.1%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

1.2%

South Penrith

House and Unit Vacancy Rate 12 months ago

1%

House and Unit Vacancy Rate now

0.5%

Mr Petty said the socio-economic status of western Sydney meant the area was more stable for renters and landlords.

“The economic evidence suggest that areas of mixed socio-economic status are associated with softer increases in rents, even with low vacancy rates or expected rent rises and therefore make them more favourable places to rent,” he said.

Tenants’ Union of NSW CEO Leo Ross said Blacktown was an area which has long been affordable as it is one of few viable areas to live for families.

“Blacktown has long been a more affordable place to make a home in Sydney, so it makes a lot of sense that people are continuing to move there from more expensive areas of the city,” he said.

“Although some parts of Sydney have seen decreased or flat rents, we have to remember any disruption from Covid was happening in one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world.

“Rents have not fallen anywhere near enough to make a fundamental difference. Especially for people on lower incomes, there are very few options.

“So in the short term we will expect to continue to see Blacktown and other similar areas remain one of the few viable options in Sydney for many renting families, which will slowly lead to rent increases and increasing unaffordability,” said Leo Ross.

The full list of the top 20 suburbs for renters is below.

Top 20 suburbs with the cheapest median rental price

#1: Ingleburn $430

#2: Blacktown $430

#3: Seven Hills $430

#4: Oakhurst $440

#5: South Penrith $450

#6: Rooty Hill $450

#7: Toongabbie $450

#8: Rosehill $460

#9: Westmead $460

#10: Wentworthville $460

#11: Greystanes $475

#12: Quakers Hill $475

#13: Parramatta $480

#14: Rydalmere $490

#15: Northmead $490

#16: Homebush West $500

#17: Dundas $510

#18: North Parramatta $510

#19: Lidcombe $520

#20: Riverstone $525

You can check out RentRabbit here.