Mortgage repayments cheaper than rent in dozens of Australian suburbs
Guardian Australia analysis shows mortgage repayments now cost less than rent in some suburbs, with one in 10 suburbs seeing repayments under $200 a week higher than rent.
Falling property prices combined with rising rents have created a rare opportunity for Australian renters to buy homes more cheaply than they can rent. Guardian Australia's analysis found that in dozens of suburbs across the country, weekly mortgage repayments now cost less than weekly rent.
In some suburbs, including Melbourne's Carlton, Melbourne CBD, and Southbank, repayments are actually cheaper. Melbourne apartment rents average $628 a week after rising 4.8% in a year, while typical mortgage repayments are $839 a week.
Across Australia, median rent rose 5.5% to $713 a week, while property prices remained flat after six months of steady falls. Canberra suburbs Belconnen and Phillip saw repayments under $75 a week higher than rent.
In Sydney, inner-city Ultimo and western suburbs Warwick Farm, Rosehill, Liverpool and Granville had repayments just $100 a week above rent. The analysis assumes a 30-year loan at 95 per cent value with a 6.2 per cent interest rate.
- $713 per week
- National median rent
- 5.5%
- Annual rent increase
- $628 per week
- Melbourne apartment rent
- $839 per week
- Melbourne apartment repayments
Why it mattersFor renters, this shift means buying a home may now cost less per week than renting, changing the financial case for homeownership.
AustraliaRenters in Australia's major cities now have a genuine incentive to buy instead of rent, potentially shifting the rental and property markets.
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