Man slammed after advertising patch of grass for $130 per week

A Sydney rental ad boasting an area “close to public transport and shops” has left potential tenants fuming over an “unbelievable” detail.

A patch of grass has been offered up for rent by a man accused of blatantly taking advantage of people desperate for somewhere to live in the housing crisis.

The small area of the man’s backyard in Eagle Vale, in Sydney’s southwest, has been advertised on Facebook Marketplace for $130 a week, with the successful applicant required to pay a $520 bond and two weeks of rent in advance.

They also would need to supply their own tent or “small shed”, the man said, and stay only on a short-term basis.

The man boasted the yard was in a “residential area, close to public transport and shops” and said he would be “open to discuss power, water, Wi-Fi, toilets and showers” for the right person.

His advertisement, which captured attention elsewhere on Facebook, has been broadly criticised, with the man being labelled “scummy”.

The successful tenant needs to bring their own shelter. Picture: Facebook

“If you’re happy to loan your backyard to someone in that situation then you shouldn’t be charging a cent. If life has become that hard for someone they have to set up a tent in someone’s backyard then wouldn’t you think they are doing it hard enough?” the person who posted the ad to a group said.

“$130 to pitch a tent in someone’s backyard and it doesn’t include access to facilities like a toilet. Exactly where are they expecting the tenants to urinate and defecate? Outside the tent like dogs?” a respondent wrote.

“Unbelievable, way to take advantage of the housing crisis,” another comment read.

Many others questioned why the man would need to charge bond, not to mention such a significant one.

The National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation’s latest State of the Nation’s Housing report for 2022-2023 found there were more than 330,000 households experiencing rental stress.

The man said they could discuss facilities.

There was confusion about the bond. Picture: Facebook

Nearly 50,000 were experiencing homelessness with vacancy rates in rental homes declining in 2022 to pre-pandemic levels.

The report found that there will be a shortage of 106,000 homes by 2027 across Australia as a result of skyrocketing interest rates, soaring immigration, a lack of building and community opposition to development.

It forecasts that in Brisbane alone – which is gearing up to host the Olympics in 2032 – there will be a shortfall of 12,300 homes within five years, while Sydney will be lacking more than 10,000 homes.

Perth is predicted to record the biggest shortfall of 25,200 dwellings by 2027.

Rent prices in Australia’s major cities went up 4 per cent in the quarter to March, while over the last year prices went up by 13 per cent.

While around 148,500 new dwellings are expected to come on to the market in the 2022-2023 financial year, this will drop to 127,500 in new construction in 2024-2025.

“Over the three years to 2024-25, NHFIC expects an average of 138,100 net new additions to be added to Australia’s housing stock. This is well below the 180,000 average each year forecast in last year’s report for the same period,” the report warned.

It expects just 57,000 homes a year to be built over the next five years, 40 per cent down on levels experienced in the late 2010s.

Meanwhile, the Centre for Population predicts net overseas migration to increase by 268,000 between 2022 and 2024, with recent data suggesting this could be considerably higher – adding to the pain already felt in the housing market.

“The rapid return of overseas migration, together with a supply pipeline constrained by decade-high construction costs and significant increases in interest rates, is exacerbating an already tight rental market,” NHFIC CEO Nathan Dal Bon said.

“NHFIC analysis shows housing affordability and supply are likely to remain challenging for some time, underscoring the need for a holistic approach to mitigate the housing pressures Australians are facing.”