Sad photo highlights Sydney’s housing crisis

A photo of a line of people at a rental inspection for a suburban Sydney apartment has raised eyebrows over the city’s rental crisis.

A photo has emerged online of people lining up outside a Sydney apartment for a rental inspection, highlighting the city’s high demand for rental properties.

Reddit user Reasonable_Smile3289 shared a picture of people queuing up to see a one-bedroom flat in central Manly.

“The madness continues, single bed rental, central Manly, this was only part of the queue, as we left people were still queuing to come up in the lift,” they wrote.

Many users chimed in over the Reddit post, saying they are not surprised by the photo.

“To be fair, this is happening almost everywhere,” one person said.

“It’s the same everywhere. Saw a house with 20+ applicants today … Is [the] start of the year usually a busier period?” another asked.

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People queuing up to see an one bedroom flat in central Manly. Picture: Reddit

Others shared similar experiences.

“I went for an inspection in Ashfield today. I didn’t feel like there were more people than pre-Covid times, but usually, they’d let you all in and out at your own pace, and it would generally be all at the same time,” one person said.

“Now you need to queue, and it takes longer as they only let 1 or 2 groups in at a time.

“Before I’d walk into an apartment, have a look; if not for me, I’d walk out in 1-2 minutes.

“Now I feel like there’s some “sunken time” mentality I have now, so if I queued for 5+ minutes, I’m actually going to spend some time looking through the apartment properly. (even if I feel it’s not right for me).”

“Drove by an inspection in Coorparoo Brisbane today, two bed one bath old apartment for $400 a week,” another wrote.

“Looked like 80+ people lined up. It’s only the cheaper places there’s lines for that I’ve seen up here.”

A rental inspection at the World Tower in Sydney. Picture: Reddit

This is not the first time a photo has highlighted Sydney’s rental crisis.

Last year, a photo shared on Reddit showed people crowding outside the Meriton Suites World Tower in Sydney for a rental inspection.

Many users expressed their sadness and frustration on the post, with some revealing how difficult it is at the moment to find an affordable home to rent in Sydney.

“There’s a feeling that non-renters don’t know that is so disheartening,” one person wrote.

“It’s when you drive up to an apartment/house – especially if you’re excited for it – and see a long queue of people snaking around the block.”

“It’s like that in other suburbs in Sydney as well. I went to an open house in Ashfield on a weekday, and there were like 20 couples who showed up,” another person wrote.

The Sydney Haymarket rental flat. Picture: Reddit

Last month, a photo posted to the AusFinance Reddit page showed dozens of people lining up in a building lobby to inspect a “tiny, tiny” one-bedroom, inner-city apartment advertised at $525 per week.

Users were quick to comment on the situation.

“Why would you even bother joining a queue that long?” one asked.

“I’ve been to worse nightclubs,” another joked.

“Renters are second-class citizens in this country. Good luck,” a third said.

According to PropTrack, NSW vacancy rates have fallen to levels not seen since 2003, while prices have increased by 3.2 per cent.

Tenants are caught in the middle, squeezed by both soaring prices and short supply.

Meanwhile, annual data from the Rental Affordability Index (RAI) found that every capital city had experienced a decline in rental affordability, with low-income renters such as single parents, pensioners and job seekers among the most vulnerable.