Qld suburbs where rent is under $500 a week

1 month ago 10

Queensland tenants hoping to secure a home for under $500 a week may have to look to the regions for a house or settle for a unit in the city.

There are now just 190 suburbs across the state with a median house rent below $500 a week, down from 627 just four years ago.

The latest PropTrack Rent Report shows that Longreach is the cheapest place to rent a house in Queensland right now, with a median of $340 a week.

Aerial view of the Qantas Founders Museum at Longreach.Photo: Contributed

The next cheapest house suburbs can be found in Charters Towers, Ayr, Ingham and Biloela at $350 a week, followed by Collinsville ($355), Blackwater ($365), Mount Morgan and Dysart ($380, and in Brisbane, Russell Island ($390) and Macleay Island ($398).

The cheapest house suburbs on Brisbane’s mainland are all located in the Ipswich region – One Mile ($420), Riverview, North Ipswich and Ipswich ($450).

Units offer the cheapest weekly rents, ranging from $250 in Pioneer in the outback to $500 in inner-city suburbs such as Clayfield and Wooloowin.

But even Rockhampton, which is one of Queensland’s most affordable places to rent, has seen asking prices spike 13.75 per cent during the July quarter, with average unit rents increasing from $400 to $455 in three months.

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412a Campbell Street, Rockhampton City, is a renovated shop house and is listed for $450 a week

And Goondiwindi, where the vacancy rate is effectively zero, has seen median asking rents for houses jump 11.63 per cent to $480 a week, up from $430 a week ago.

But that pales in comparison to the 26.32 per cent increase in rent prices over the year, with median asking price up $100 on the same time last year.

At the other end of the spectrum, Minyama on the Sunshine Coast has recorded the biggest increase in rent prices, year-on-year, up 37.65 per cent for houses to $1170.

A two-bedroom unit at Mitchell is listed for $175 a week

The research comes after PropTrack revealed that the national vacancy rate held stead in July, dropping just 0.01 percentage points to 1.42 per cent.

“While conditions remain incredibly tough for Australia’s renters, rental supply has improved over the past three months, with the national vacancy rate rising 0.18 percenatge points to 1.42 per cent,” PropTrack senior economist Anne Flaherty said.

“Capital cities have seen the largest improvement, with vacancy up in six of the eight cities over the quarter.”

Sadly, Brisbane was not one of them.

A one bedroom “retreat” at 33a Atkinson Road, Bli Bli, is listed for $500 a week

The Brisbane vacancy rate fell 0.05 percentage points to 1.16 per cent, well below the combined capital vacancy rate of 1.47 per cent.

Regional Queensland vacancy rates remained unchanged at 1.27 per cent, slightly below the regional average of 1.28 per cent nationally.

75 Martyn Street, Parramatta Park, in Cairns, is listed for $480 a week

Since March 2020, vacancy rates have tanked across Queensland, down 47 per cent in Greater Brisbane and 48 per cent in the combined regions.

Rental listings on realestate.com.au paint a picture of what is available to tenants with a ceiling of $500 a week.

At Guanaba, $475 a week will get you a standalone, one-bedroom cottage with a new kitchen on acreage.

The catch? The owners live onsite in the main house.

This cottage at Guanaba is listed for $475 a week

Other options include a two-bedroom house at Woodridge ($440), a three-bedroom house at Kelso ($460), a four-bedroom house at Dalby ($440), and a one-bedroom “retreat” at Bli Bli ($500) with a seperate tenancy in the main house.

9 Daisy Street, Kelso, is listed for $460 a week

There is also a one-bedroom granny flat at Regents Park listed for $400 but the tenant will only have access to an open parking spot and the rear yard for clothesline access only.

SuburbTrends recently revealed that Queensland had the highest rental pain index – 83 – in Australia, well above the national rate of 72.

“This underlines that rental affordability issues in QLD are becoming more pronounced, requiring over 32 per cent of income for rent,” the SurbTrends Rent Pain Index report for August said.

23 Orford Street, Tarragindi, is listed for $450 a week

Seventy-eight per cent of tenants across the 489 suburbs samples were experiencing “extreme rental pain”, according to the report.

Suburbs that recorded a maximum rental pain index of 100 were located right across the state, including places like Cooloola, Nanango, Caboolture, Waterford West, Wilsonton, Bundaberg East, Moffat Beach, Woree and Rockhampton City.

217 Kingston Road, Woodridge, is listed for $480 a week

Coombabah tenants had the highest income-to-rent ratio of 60 per cent, followed by Tewantin and Bribie Island (54%), Cooloola, Agnes Water-Miriam Vale, Pialba-Eli Waters and Currumbin Waters (52%), Burleigh Waters, Surfers Paradise North, Labrador, and Broadbeach Waters 51%).

But there are some cheap options for those willing to dial down their expectations.

A single room in share accommodation at Kenilworth is listed for $150 a week, while a two-bedroom unit in Mitchell is listed for $175 a week.