There’s a bill renters can’t escape – and it isn’t rent or a mortgage.
New Money.com.au data shows the average Australian shelled out $4700 on moving in the past decade, roughly $1567 every time they packed up, and one in five paid between $5000 and $10,000 just to shift homes.
The research reveals renters are relocating about every three years and the expenses are piling up, from removalists and fresh bonds to overlapping rent and end‑of‑lease cleaning, compounding the squeeze from rising weekly rents and tight rental supply.
Money.com.au Property Expert Nick Burgess says moving costs like removalists, bond payments and paying rent on two properties at once have become a serious financial burden, and the past few years have made that strain sharper.
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“If you’re a renter who has to move at the end of every lease to avoid a rent hike, or you’re moving interstate or relocating across major cities, moving costs can quickly become prohibitive,” Burgess says.
“I’ve seen cases where a couple spent $7000 to move from Brisbane to the Gold Coast, and another family spent $5000 relocating from Geelong to Melbourne for work.”
Source: Money.com.au
He argues that if rent money is considered “dead money”, then the moving tax is a silent killer because it’s thousands of dollars renters spend every time they relocate and, over the years, those costs really snowball.
Put in perspective, the average moving bill of $4700 is about one‑tenth of a 5 per cent deposit on the median combined house and unit price of $883,000, which Burgess says is yet another barrier to home ownership for many renters.
The most painful line items are familiar: nearly half of renters pointed to removalist fees, at 45 per cent, and paying a new bond before the old one is returned, at 44 per cent.
Another 27 per cent said double rent during the overlap is a major stressor, while 24 per cent cited end‑of‑lease cleaning costs.
Money.com.au Property Expert Nick Burgess
Fewer renters blamed time off work, at 9 per cent, and utility reconnection fees, at 7 per cent.
The toll isn’t uniform across the country.
Queensland renters paid the most to relocate, averaging $5100 over the past decade – about $1700 per move – with the ACT close behind at $5000, or $1667 per move.
New South Wales came in at $4800, or $1600 per move, while Victoria and the Northern Territory both sat at $4700, or $1567 per move.
Western Australia averaged $4500, or $1500 per move.
Fresh research from Money.com.au reveals renters are packing up roughly every three years, and the costs are stacking up fast. Photo by Richard Gosling
South Australia was lower again at $3700, or $1233 per move, and Tasmania was the cheapest, averaging $3000 over the decade, or roughly $1000 per move.
Generationally, Millennials are being hit hardest.
They paid an average of $5300 over the past decade, well above Gen X at $4600, Gen Z at $4300 and Baby Boomers at $4200.
With renters shifting every few years and fronting bills that can eclipse a month’s rent, the moving tax is shaping up as the hidden cost Australians can’t afford to ignore.
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