Rental stress rife in Tassie with low income households priced out of all regions

Tasmania has one of the country’s most unaffordable rental markets, relative to income, with new analysis showing low income households are in rental stress in Hobart.

Stressed renter iStock for Herald Sun real estate

Tasmania has become one of the most unaffordable rental market in the country, according to a new report, which shows rents in Hobart are so high, many on low incomes are in housing stress.

The Priced Out: Index of Affordable Rentals for People on the Lowest Income report by Everybody’s Home, a national campaign dedicated to fixing Australia’s housing crisis found that rental stress was not restricted to Hobart with rents out of reach across all of Tasmania’s regions for all households relying primarily on Centrelink payments.

The analysis found a single person on the minimum wage would have to spend 57 per cent of their income on rent in Hobart.

A couple on the age pension would have to spend 48 per cent of their incomes on rent in Hobart, 45 per cent in Launceston, 40 on the West Coast and 38 in Burnie and on the East Coast.

Households paying more than 40 per cent of their income on housing costs are considered to be in rental stress.

Everybody’s Home spokeswoman Maiy Azize said those on the lowest incomes in Australia were being priced out of renting in every corner of the country.

Everybody’s Home spokeswoman Maiy Azize. Picture: Supplied

“From those who rely on Centrelink payments to those working full-time on the minimum wage with no income support at all, there’s virtually nowhere in Australia for people on low incomes to afford a rental without falling into crippling housing stress,” she said.

The report said Tasmania’s low wages meant demand and competition for affordable rentals was likely to be “fiercer” than on the mainland.

The data showed a single person on Jobseeker would be spending 92 per cent of their income on rent in Hobart.

In Launceston 86 per cent of their income would be spent on rent.

Out in the regions Burnie was the most affordable with a single person on Jobseeker having to spend 73 per cent of their income on rent, 74 on the East Coast and 76 on the West Coast.

The analysis compares data on rents against payment rates for households on low incomes with data sourced from the SQM Research Weekly Rents Index for the week ending September 4 2024.