‘Staggeringly high’ wage needed to afford rents nationwide revealed

A once-secure $100,000 salary is now far below the income Aussies need to afford average rents, sparking new warnings about the country’s rental crisis.

Australians need to be on a $130,000 salary to afford the average nationwide rent, new analysis finds.

Even those being paid far above the median Australian income still cannot comfortably afford an average rental, according to a new report from housing affordability campaign group Everybody’s Home.

“These findings underscore an alarming shift in Australia’s housing market,” Everybody’s Home spokeswoman Maiy Azize said.

“This crisis is stopping people from being able to live and work in their communities, leading people to delay major life choices, and threatening social cohesion.

“A $100,000 salary used to be considered a secure income, but our research shows people on this wage are struggling in both cities and regional areas because rents are so staggeringly high.”

Going on the accepted 30 per cent rent-to-income ratio, rents are massively unaffordable in Australian capital cities. Picture: NewsWire / Max Mason-Hubers

Rent prices in northern WA and the Gold Coast were most expensive, chewing up more than half of a $100,000 salary, based on analysis of listed prices from the first week of March.

A 30 per cent rent-to-income ratio is the internationally recognised benchmark for rental affordability.

People being paid above the $72,000 median national income are forced to pay more than 30 per cent of their income on rent across WA, Victoria, NSW and Queensland, according to the Everybody’s Home report.

Even those with a gross income of $130,000 reach that 30 per cent threshold across the country, from cities including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast to regions such as The Central Coast.

Houses being unaffordable for professional and essential workers hurts Australia’s overall economic productivity. Picture: NewsWire / Nadir Kinani

Rents dip below that 30 per cent benchmark with a $130,000 pre-tax salary in Adelaide, or $120,000 in Hobart and Darwin, according to the Everybody’s Home report.

Someone working in Canberra for $130,000 a year still has to shell out 31 per cent of their income on rent, the analysis finds.

“For people earning an income at or below $100,000, rent remains well above the 30 per cent affordability benchmark in around half of all regions,” the report said.

“At the lowest income level of $40,000 per year, renting is completely unsustainable, with tenants required to spend between 41 per cent and 119 per cent of their net income on rent, depending on location.

“These findings underscore a major shift in Australia’s housing market – rental stress is no longer confined to low-income earners. People on middle incomes are now struggling to find affordable housing.”

“The growing housing affordability crisis threatens economic productivity, as key workers and professionals are priced out of cities and regional centres where they are needed most.”

Originally published as ‘Staggeringly high’ wage needed to afford rents nationwide revealed