A “studio” apartment with toilet in the shower has sparked outrage online. Picture: reddit.
A questionable “studio” apartment has sparked outrage online – and not just because it has a toilet in the shower.
Photos of the tiny apartment were shared on reddit, showing a room with little more than a kitchenette, a queen-size bed and a study desk.
It also has a small bathroom with a toilet and basin in the shower.
But it was the $480 per week asking price for the “small shed” at the rear of a house opposite Flinders Medical Centre and Flinders University that left the reddit user who shared the images shocked, even with Wi-Fi, bills and furniture included.
The median rent for a unit in Adelaide is $540 per week and $630 for a house, according to latest PropTrack data.
MORE: Affordable housing option now out of reach for many
A reddit user couldn’t believe this “studio apartment” near Flinders Medical Centre had an asking rent of $480 per week. Picture: reddit.
It’s certainly tight inside the apartment. Picture: reddit.
While some shared experiences of living in similar situations overseas and interstate, many online were just as shocked as the original poster.
Some claimed it was “just depressing” and “an absolute joke”, while others insisted it “should be illegal”.
“I think this is someone who is taking advantage of international uni students who are sick of shared facilities in the accommodation in the city, there is someone who is probably going to take it on for close proximity to where they’ll be studying,” one said.
“That’s gotta be illegal. Surely it can be reported?,” said another.
Real Estate Institute of South Australia chief executive Andrea Heading said planning rules changed in 2023 to allow granny flats to be rented out in SA.
“The aim was to help increase rental supply in the housing market,” she said.
“It needs to function like an individual rental dwelling though.”
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The apartment’s toilet is inside the shower.
The rent included Wi-Fi, bills and furniture. Picture: reddit.
Ms Heading said granny flats needed to meet minimum housing and safety standards if they were to be rented out.
While she understood some people were desperate in Adelaide’s tight market, Ms Heading urged those considering renting granny flats to be cautious.
Ensuring they met the minimum standard and comparing asking rent with other rentals managed by reputable agencies in the area were the first steps, she said.
“That rent seems inflated,” she said.
“I’d also be making sure that you get a lease that’s been developed under the residential tenancies act so then you’ve got all the protections under that.
“Be very, very wary of any rentals that are advertised on Facebook or Gumtree, and don’t pay rent in advance because we know of Facebook and rental scams that have occurred.”
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