Hobart housing crisis: Tourism squeezing out affordable rentals in Tasmania

[Cerberus1]

A new report has singled out Tasmania as one of two regions in the country where soaring tourism has led to a "rapid decline" in affordable rental properties.

The 2018 Anglicare Rental Affordability Snapshot, released today, singled out Tasmania's tourism boom and expansion of holiday rental provider Airbnb in Hobart as key contributors to a housing shortage.

The authors said a record 1.3 million tourists to the state in 2017 created "unprecedented" demand for accommodation, resulting in Airbnb listings jumping from 2,874 to 4,459 in the 12 months to February 2018.

Three quarters of those listings are full homes and 61 per cent are in Tasmania's south.

Anglicare concluded this growth, alongside rising housing prices, have taken rental affordability "from bad to worse".

The snapshot of 1,285 Tasmanian properties is taken from websites and the three major newspapers on one weekend in March.

Properties are deemed affordable if the weekly rent is less than 30 per cent of household income.

Of those properties, less than half were considered affordable for Tasmanians on a minimum wage.

Only 21 per cent of properties were affordable for households on income support payments.

Anglicare social action and research manager, Meg Webb, told ABC Radio Hobart there were a combination of factors at play.

"Let's talk about it as two things, because one of the things we notice with this snapshot each year over the last five years is that the number of properties advertised is dropping, and the second part is what proportion of that pool is affordable," she said.

None of the properties in the sample were affordable for a young person on Newstart, which has been the case in consecutive reports.

The authors note Tasmania's wages remain the lowest in the country, potentially inhibiting the ability of people to access housing.

"While the state's housing market and cost-of-living pressures surge, Tasmanian wages continue to be the lowest in the nation," the report said.

"If wage growth continuously fails to keep up with property prices and living costs, Tasmanians will continue to be locked out of their own housing market."

These results come off the back of Commsec's State of the State report, which revealed Tasmania has recorded the strongest population growth in the country.

Tasmania ranked fourth overall in economic performance — finishing behind New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT.

Commsec senior economist Ryan Felsman told ABC Radio Hobart the economic data supports the idea of a tightening housing market.

"Certainly, if you look at house price growth in Hobart at the moment it leads the nation at 13 per cent on an annualised basis, and at the same time, rents are up by 3.7 per cent," he said.

[Cerberus1]

Hobart now Australia's most unaffordable city for tenants, new report finds

Hobart has pipped Sydney to claim the unenviable title of Australia's most unaffordable capital for tenants with the gap widening between incomes and the amount needed for rent, a new report has found.

The Rental Affordability Index (RAI) is an indicator of the price of rents nationwide relative to household incomes based on new rental agreements.

The biannual study is published by National Shelter Community Sector Banking and SGS Economics and Planning.

From being seen a budget alternative to the mainland cities, Hobart's unprecedented real estate sales boom combined with low incomes, a tourism burst and a surge in former rental properties being offered as short-term accommodation, has catapulted it to the top of the RAI.

The latest report showed tenants in Hobart were spending 29 per cent of their wages on rent with Sydney renters close behind with 27 per cent, followed by Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra and Perth.

"Rents in Tasmania are now on par with the rest of Australia, however average Tasmanian households earn over $300 a week less than mainland households," SGS partner Ellen Witte said.

"With over 8,000 low-income households already in housing stress, rental unaffordability is now rising up the income ladder, increasingly impacting average working families."

The combination of rising rent and low income growth had created "unprecedented hardship" for those seeking affordable accommodation, Shelter Tas executive officer Pattie Chugg said.

"Rental affordability in Tasmania has fallen to its lowest point since the index began in 2015," she said.

People in Hobart earn on average $30,000 less per year than Sydney residents but the gap in the cost of rents between the cities has narrowed.

Housing economist Andrew Wilson said it costs an average of $420 a week to rent in Hobart.

"Sydney has been joined by Canberra as the most expensive capital city, asking rents for housing of $550 per week," he said.

"Next highest is Darwin at $530 per week, Brisbane at $400, with Adelaide the second most affordable capital city, next to Perth at $375 per week.

Source: http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-23/hobart-beats-sydney-most-unaffordable-for-renters/9788300?pfmredir=sm

[Toots]

13 hours ago, Cerberus1 said:

Hobart now Australia's most unaffordable city for tenants, new report finds

Hobart has pipped Sydney to claim the unenviable title of Australia's most unaffordable capital for tenants with the gap widening between incomes and the amount needed for rent, a new report has found.

The Rental Affordability Index (RAI) is an indicator of the price of rents nationwide relative to household incomes based on new rental agreements.

The biannual study is published by National Shelter Community Sector Banking and SGS Economics and Planning.

From being seen a budget alternative to the mainland cities, Hobart's unprecedented real estate sales boom combined with low incomes, a tourism burst and a surge in former rental properties being offered as short-term accommodation, has catapulted it to the top of the RAI.

The latest report showed tenants in Hobart were spending 29 per cent of their wages on rent with Sydney renters close behind with 27 per cent, followed by Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra and Perth.

"Rents in Tasmania are now on par with the rest of Australia, however average Tasmanian households earn over $300 a week less than mainland households," SGS partner Ellen Witte said.

"With over 8,000 low-income households already in housing stress, rental unaffordability is now rising up the income ladder, increasingly impacting average working families."

The combination of rising rent and low income growth had created "unprecedented hardship" for those seeking affordable accommodation, Shelter Tas executive officer Pattie Chugg said.

"Rental affordability in Tasmania has fallen to its lowest point since the index began in 2015," she said.

People in Hobart earn on average $30,000 less per year than Sydney residents but the gap in the cost of rents between the cities has narrowed.

Housing economist Andrew Wilson said it costs an average of $420 a week to rent in Hobart.

"Sydney has been joined by Canberra as the most expensive capital city, asking rents for housing of $550 per week," he said.

"Next highest is Darwin at $530 per week, Brisbane at $400, with Adelaide the second most affordable capital city, next to Perth at $375 per week.

Source: http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-23/hobart-beats-sydney-most-unaffordable-for-renters/9788300?pfmredir=sm

It's talked about on the news a lot here.  It's about time more public housing was built.