Last week, Cotality released its housing affordability report for the September quarter of 2025, which revealed that rental affordability has hit its lowest level on record.
The percentage of income required to meet advertised rents on the median home hit a record high of 33.4% in the September quarter, up from 26.2% five years earlier.
This decline in affordability followed a 43.8% rise in advertised rents at the national level over the past five years, adding $10,600 annually to the cost of renting the median home.
Cotality has released its housing market results for November, which revealed that advertised rents rose by 0.5% over the month to be 5% higher annually. This follows the national rental vacancy rate remaining at a record low of just 1.5%.
Source: Cotality
“Rental markets remain extremely tight with no sign of Gross rental yields, dwellings vacancy rates loosening”, Cotality stated in its release.
“Nationally, the past four months have seen rental vacancy rates holding close to record lows at just 1.5%, down from 1.9% a year ago”.
“With vacancy rates remaining low, rents are continuing to rise”, Cotality added. “The national rental index rose half a per cent in November to be 5.0% higher over the past 12 months – he highest annual pace of rental growth since the same time last year”.
“Dwelling rents are rising across every capital city”.
“The ongoing rise in rental costs is occurring against a backdrop of severe rental affordability pressures. The latest Cotality affordability metrics estimate that the cost of rent equated to just over one third of a household’s pre-tax income in September, a new record high”, Cotality said.
The story isn’t going to change until population growth via net overseas migration is reduced to a level below the nation’s ability to build housing and infrastructure.
Sadly, there is no appetite within the federal government to reduce population demand and alleviate the housing shortage, which means the rental crisis will be ongoing.
