The suburbs where rental prices rose and fell the most in 2023

New data has revealed the shocking extent of Australia’s rental crisis, highlighting the suburbs where rents surged by more than 40% over 2023.

Tenants across Australia have felt the brunt of enormous rental price increases throughout the year, exacerbating an already dire situation in a rental market characterised by intense competition for the few homes available.

Price increases have been widespread, with rents jumping in desirable inner areas of capital cities as well as cheaper suburbs as renters chase pockets of affordability.

PropTrack senior economist Angus Moore said there simply weren’t enough rental properties available for the number of people needing a home, which had rapidly driven rents to record levels.

“The reason we’re seeing quick growth in rents at the moment is just down to very limited availability of rentals which means it’s extremely competitive to get one,” he said. “They’re leasing very quickly and that puts pressure on rents.”

The roots of the rental crisis go back several years, Mr Moore said, with the effects of the pandemic still lingering.

“We saw a lot of share houses break up and so people moved into smaller households on average, which means we just need more rental properties for the same number of renters, so that drove a lot of rental demand in 2020 and 2021,” he said. 

“More recently with borders reopened, the population has been growing and that’s contributing to rental demand as well.”

“But we’ve been seeing rent growth in Brisbane and Adelaide well before borders opened, so that’s not a singular cause.”

“The other factor is we haven’t been building homes as quickly as prior to the pandemic. That obviously means we’re seeing fewer new rental properties coming to the market.”

Suburbs in Western Australia have recorded some of the biggest price rises in the country, spread across pricey inner suburbs of Perth, affordable areas on the urban fringe and regional hubs servicing the mining industry.

The beachside suburb of Swanbourne had the nation’s fastest rent growth for houses, with the advertised median weekly rent jumping 42.5% over the year to $1400, making it one of the most expensive suburbs to rent in Perth, and Australia.

Rental prices jumped 42.5% in Swanbourne in Perth’s western suburbs, rising to a median of $1400 per week. Picture: Getty

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Rental demand has outweighed supply across Perth’s western suburbs, but competition had been intense in Swanbourne given its desirable position and low supply of available rentals, according to Hub Residential senior property manager Julie Harrington.

“Swanbourne is actually a smaller suburb, so there’s a lot more competition,” she said.

Perth’s rental market was particularly challenging given the city’s population growth and turnover of rental properties, Ms Harrington said. 

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“We’ve just got more people coming to Perth than we have houses,” she said. “Given the sales market has been so good, a lot of people have sold investment properties too, so…