Victoria rental prices: What it costs to rent a house and unit in every suburb right now

Victorian tenants have been handed the keys to finding a better deal on their next rental with the median cost of leasing a house or unit in every suburb revealed.

This home at 7/140 Tambo Circuit, Whittlesea is $420 a week to rent right now. See below what it costs to rent a home or unit in every Victorian suburb.

Victorian tenants have been handed the keys to finding a better deal on their next rental with the median cost of leasing a house or unit in every suburb revealed.

But they will have to take action to beat the state’s worsening housing crisis with experts suggesting their best odds of keeping a roof over their head could be relocating, teaming up with friends or winning over their landlord by taking good care of their home.

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New PropTrack figures have revealed staggering $100-plus a week increases for houses in 22 suburbs over the past year, headed by a $180 a week increase in Black Rock.

There have also been $100+ rises in the cost of renting units in the Melbourne CBD, Docklands and Southbank as demand for urban-life resumes.

But despite the surging costs, families willing to move even a suburb or two away might find they can save just as much on the cost of renting a house.

New PropTrack data (below) shows where there have been a total of 108 suburbs where house or unit rent prices have dipped in the past three months.

In Melbourne’s west, swapping Altona North’s $518 median rent for Altona Meadows’ $395 typical payment could save renters $122 a week.

To the north, Heidelberg’s typical house costs $550 a week to rent. But move to Heidelberg Heights and that figure drops to $450, while in Heidelberg West it is just $400.

There’s a $60 a week difference in the cost of renting a $750 median home in Bentleigh and a $690 one in neighbouring Bentleigh East.

20 Clapperton St, Bentleigh is up for rent for $1200 a week.

In neighbouring suburb Bentleigh East, 91 Brady Rd is $820 a week.

And tenants could be $80 a week better off in Narre Warren than Berwick next door.

But despite the potential to save, PropTrack economist Eleanor Creagh said so far most tenants were opting to stay put — likely in part because there were so few homes for lease.

Separate figures released by SQM Research this week estimated there were just 5545 vacant homes for rent in Victoria in February, compared to 14,777 at the same time a year ago.

“We know that new leases as a share of total leases have been declining, so we think the price difference that’s emerged over the past year has kept people in place,” Ms Creagh said.

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“But it would make sense, and you would expect that if someone’s rent had been significantly increased they could potentially look for a rental in a more affordable suburb.”

Real Estate Institute of Victoria president Andrew Meehan encouraged landlords who had good tenants who were struggling with rent hikes to consider a lower figure than market rates might dictate as it could save them far more hassle.

25 Augustus Drive, Berwick costs $595 a week to rent.

Whereas 2/12 Meadow Wood Walk, Narre Warren costs $430pw.

“I have personally accepted tenants at a lower rate because they have been a good, long-term tenant,” Mr Meehan said.

“There’s value to having a long-term tenant you know and understand, rather than the hassle of finding a new tenant. Most would prefer not to go through that if possible.”

However, in areas where prices had surged $100 or more, he said tenants might have to be realistic and look at other options — much as homeowners whose mortgage had soared beyond their capacity might have to sell.

“It’s not helpful for a tenant to fall into arrears as that could make it difficult to potentially get future rental properties,” Mr Meehan said.

64 Hodgson St, Heidelberg costs $520 a week to rent right now

“But there’s certainly some people making decisions to move in with others and spreading the cost, which is not a bad way to do it.”

Ms Creagh said while regional Victoria currently had a vacancy rate at 1.3 per cent, below the 1.4 per cent they had recorded for metropolitan Melbourne there were signs demand for regional rentals was decreasing — though only enough to slow price hikes, not stop them.

In Melbourne, rental prices seemed likely to rise into the future as demand grows — especially for inner ring areas and particularly for apartments with the median for a CBD apartment now up $150 a week from last year.

7/140 Tambo Circuit, Whittlesea

“We are certainly seeing that price and demand pressures have shifted to the capital cities,” Ms Creagh said.

“It doesn’t look like there’s anything meaningful on the horizon that would suggest conditions would ease or there would be a reprieve.”

Despite the potential for shopping around, Melbourne families might struggle with just 174 areas in the city where you can still rent a typical house under $500 a week compared to 206 at or above the figure in the latest PropTrack data.

A year ago there were 213 suburbs with rents below $500 and only 167 above that figure.

Tenants Victoria community engagement director Farah Farouque said with kids in local schools and childcare, families would find it particularly difficult to “pull up stumps in search of their next home”.

“Our service is handling a constant stream of queries from people worried about the impact of rent increases, alongside other rising costs,” Ms Farouque said.

“We think it’s time for the Victorian government to act and curb the size of rent increases … (they) should consult renters and landlords with the goal of legislating a ‘fairness formula’ to regulate rent increases.”

Long term, Mr Meehan said the only real solution to Victoria’s rental crisis was an increased supply of rental homes — something the state government could foster by reviewing property taxes and other costs for landlords.

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