Travelling couple given reality check by Aussie locals after asking for a $400 per week rental

An opportunistic couple planning an 10-week holiday in Australia have been delivered a dose of reality by locals.

An opportunistic couple planning an 10-week holiday in Australia have been delivered a dose of reality by locals.

An opportunistic couple arriving soon in Australia have been shut down by locals after they asked for help finding an apartment for $400 a week in one of the country’s most sought after towns.

The pair, arriving soon from Canada, were looking for a furnished apartment in the affluent Sunshine Coast hotspot of Noosa, and were swiftly informed they were dreaming.

“Hi there! My girlfriend and I are looking for a furnished apartment in the Noosa Heads area. Can be in Tewantin, Noosaville and near there! We will arrive on December 28th until mid March so around 10 weeks,” their post to social media read.

“Our budget is around 350-400$ pw. We are looking forward [to] exploring the area!

Thanks in advance!”

They soon received dozens of responses pointing out their budget would likely need to be tripled if they were serious about securing an apartment for themselves.

The Sunshine Coast, much like other hotspots across the country, has been hit hard by the horrible double whammy of the housing crisis and soaring cost of living.

It has never been more expensive to live in Australia – and more than 100 people stepped in to make sure the young couple were made aware.

“You may be homeless, like many others, if you come here with the ‘plan’ you have,” one told them.

Locals didn’t hold back when these two asked for a $400 per week rental. Picture: Facebook

“You’re probably gonna have to double your budget I’m afraid,” another said.

Several others suggested they would be better off looking for a room, rather than an entire apartment, but noted even rooms were being rented out for far more than $400 a week.

“400 a week is long gone. It’s double or triple your budget now unfortunately. You’ll be looking at a hostel for that money at a push,” one person said.

Many others agreed the couple would even be hard pressed finding something in Noosa that was $400 for just a night.

“I would book ASAP at a backpackers. You are coming in high season. It’s extremely expensive. There’s no way on earth you will find a fully furnished unit at that cost. Example, I was looking for accommodation for December and all the accommodation for six nights was from $6000 – $7000,” one wrote.

Some encouraged the couple to broaden their search and consider lifting their budget if they were set on staying on the Sunshine Coast.

The couple’s appeal came after it was revealed that a lack of affordable rentals was the single driving factor behind staff shortages across Noosa.

The proclamation came from the Noosa 450 campaign, established in September by the Noosa business community, to call on more affordable housing for the region.

Affordable housing that cost $450 per week or less was the campaign’s primary goal, which it called on all levels of government to facilitate.

Queues for rental inspections are common sights across the country. Picture: Chris Pavlich/The Australian

The campaign was responding to the Queensland government’s call for consultation over the draft of a plan that would see 4900 homes built in the Noosa shire by 2046 in what would accommodate 19,100 people.

“While 33.1 per cent of properties in the whole of Queensland are available to rent, only 20.9 per cent of occupied dwellings are available to rent in Noosa,” Noosa Chamber of Commerce president Ralph Rogers said, according to Sunshine Coast News.

David Langdon, CEO of Aspire Property Management which spearheaded the Noosa 450 campaign, said the dire rental market left property managers “continually frustrated”.

“While there are often plenty of available rentals over $750 per week, we are continually frustrated by not being able to help those at the lower end of the market,” he said.

“A lack of affordable rentals is the singular factor driving the current staff shortage in Noosa. We have seen within our team, and other local businesses, that people have left the shire to work elsewhere, and it is happening all over town.”

The average rent in Noosa now tops $900 a week, while a home in Noosa Heads is more than $1100 a week.

Housing availability is at an all-time low. Picture: Matt Thompson

Since the rental crisis began in the nation’s capital cities back in 2021, it has been the thorn in the side of millions of Australians. Vacancy rates have dropped to historic lows and rents have set off for the moon.

More Australians in the grip of a tightening housing crisis are turning to single rooms to keep a roof over their head, and there are now several suburbs across major cities without a single spare room available.

Demand for flatshares is booming, with an 11.2 per cent increase in people joining flatmates.com.au — a website that connects renters with tenants — in just the past month, and a 15.6 per cent increase from October 2022.

But the country’s crippling imbalance between housing supply and demand has extended into the single room market, with multiple suburbs showing zero listings for spare rooms despite renters willing to shell out big bucks for a place to stay.

Median room rent in Sydney has increased 16.7 per cent to hit $350 per week.

In Melbourne, it has increased 17.4 per cent to hit $270 a week, while Brisbane has risen 16.4 per cent to reach $275.

Adelaide has increased 16.7 per cent to $245 and Perth has increased 15.2 per cent to $265.

Room prices in Hobart and Canberra have remained stable.