Brisbane rental market - 67% of income

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Low income earners, students and pensioners are being locked out of Brisbane’s rental market, according to new figures.

On Wednesday a report from National Shelter and SGS Economics containing the Rental Affordability Index revealed most postcodes in inner to middle Brisbane remained moderately unaffordable to unaffordable. 

 

The report showed that single pensioner households in Brisbane were spending up to 67 per cent of their income on rent while students were forking out up to 60 per cent of their income on rent.

Low income earners, students and pensioners are being locked out of Brisbane’s rental market according to the latest rental figures.

Ian Yates, chief executive of seniors advocacy body COTA Australia, said National Shelter’s latest Rental Affordability Index was a stark reminder of just how dire the housing situation was for too many Australians.

“Too often we hear stories of age pensioners who are left to choose between using the last of their income to buy food or medication once they have met their obligations for rent and utilities,” he said.

The RAI deemed median rents higher than 30 per cent of a household’s income to be unaffordable.

The Rental Vulnerability Index shows how exposed tenants are to problems that may make their rental housing unaffordable, insecure or inappropriate. Photo: Supplied

The average rental household in Greater Brisbane spends 25 per cent of their total income on rent.

 

The Rental Vulnerability Index, a project commissioned by Tenants Queensland, looked at rental vulnerability as the vulnerability of persons to problems that may make their rental housing unaffordable, insecure or inappropriate. 

The RVI showed in south-east Queensland parts of Chandler, Inala, Durack, Logan and Riverview ranked at the top end of the scale while renters in most of inner Brisbane, Wakerley, Gumdale, Nathan and Ferny Grove faced relatively low to no levels of rental vulnerability.

Tenants Queensland CEO Penny Carr said the RVI showed many vulnerable households had been pushed out to the urban fringe and regional areas in search of cheaper housing and were still facing rental stress, with fewer opportunities to improve their circumstances over the long term.

Ms Carr said the index would play a vital role in identifying the areas of most vulnerability and the support services needed.

[Johndoe]

I've seen an increase in rental sharing in the last few years evidenced by the amount of cars in driveways which generally indicates that the garage is being utilised as living space.

I have a rental property next door to me, initially occupied by a single mother and her teen son with no cars in the drive...................6 months on and it now has 4 cars on the drive and lawn, all with P plates on................they rarely move from those positions which indicate to me that they are either not seeking, or not obtaining employment, which is rather sad. OTOH, they are not a spot of bother with no loud music etc and I assume that the only way the mother can survive is to take  a "donation" from her son's friends centre link payments.............she works as well which makes it even more concerning that she has to resort to this to make ends meet.

OTOH, it pisses me off that despite all those young adults in residence, their grass, which rarely gets cut, creeps through my fence and the only way I can shift it is to hand weed as I have hedges to the fence.................it's pretty hard to show consideration/empathy for others when they are infringing on your own lifestyle, or again, perhaps not, and all that illustrates whenever they piss me off, is that I'm a grumpy old bastard

[Goofy2018]

Yes renting sucks in a lot of ways and it'll only get worse. I know plenty of people (usually single) who pay 40-50% of their income on rent. 

Having said that, as a single person it can work out better to pay higher rent and live closer to work and nightlife. Living in an outer suburb might save a littke bit in rent but your transport costs would be a lot higher. You'd also spend more time getting to and from work. 

[Johndoe]

The tenant above has gone now and the house has sat empty for 3 weeks. It needed a complete paint job!

This sweeping statement makes me laugh " The RAI deemed median rents higher than 30 per cent of a household’s income to be unaffordable." Shouldn't it be qualified as "median household's income"? or?...........if a household has a joint income of $1500 are they saying that if they use $500 for rent then that household find it unaffordable to live off the other $1000?

What do folk expect out of life nowadays? OK, I've no mortgage but I manage to feed 3 of us and pay all the household bills out of $530 weekly AND I reckon I'm living fairly comfortable.