Invest
Revisiting the rent v buy property conundrum
A growing number of regions are reporting rental prices that are on par with mortgage repayments, reigniting the age-old question of whether Australians are better off renting or buying.
Revisiting the rent v buy property conundrum
A growing number of regions are reporting rental prices that are on par with mortgage repayments, reigniting the age-old question of whether Australians are better off renting or buying.
The new housing affordability report from ANZ and CoreLogic has examined the costs of housing as a proportion of average incomes.
Here’s a breakdown of what it found:
Servicing new mortgages
According to the report, repayments on a new mortgage on a regional dwelling currently require 30.6 per cent of gross household income.
For detached houses, this breaks down to 31.4 per cent, while for units, this sits at 27.5 per cent.
It’s down from the peak across both houses and units of 53.1 per cent gross household income, as recorded in March 2008.
The report went on to indicate that the proportion of income required by regional households to service a new mortgage has been held below one-third since June 2013.
Share of income required for rent
“The proportion of income required to pay the rent is roughly equivalent compared with the proportion of income required to service a mortgage across regional Australia,” the report read.
On average, renters are dedicating 30.3 per cent of their salary to accommodation costs, which is only slightly below the 30.6 per cent recorded for mortgage payers.
ANZ and CoreLogic have noted that rental costs have been trending upwards since late 2016, “reflecting an 8.6 per cent rise in rents between the end of 2016 and June 2019, while household incomes were up a lower 5.3 per cent”.
To rent a house, costs as a percentage of income are sitting at 30.6 per cent, while the proportion being spent on servicing a unit rental agreement is now sitting at 29 per cent.
The findings led to CoreLogic’s head of research, Tim Lawless, highlighting an increase in the number of locations where it is cheaper to buy than rent.
Almost 80 regions Australia-wide have been flagged by ANZ and CoreLogic as locations where this is the case.
Such locations include the ACT’s Molonglo, Greater Brisbane’s Ipswich Hinterland and Ipswich Inner, NSW’s Broken Hill, Snowy Mountains and Dubbo, Greater Perth’s Kwinana and Armadale, Greater Hobart’s Brighton, and Darwin city and suburbs.
Mr Lawless said this can be attributed to “the lowest interest rates since the 1950s, together with lower housing prices relative to the market peak.”
nestegg previously reported that housing affordability has now peaked as housing prices rebound.
RELATED ARTICLES
About the author
About the author
Property
Twice the demand: the case study behind Melbourne’s first‑home buyer surge
Melbourne has quietly engineered one of Australia’s most consequential housing turnarounds, with first‑home buyer demand running at roughly double the national pace and four of the top five buyer ...Read more
Property
First‑home buyers now anchor Australia’s mortgage growth — but the risk maths is changing
Great Southern Bank’s revelation that nearly one in three of its new mortgages went to first‑home buyers is not an outlier. It is the leading edge of a broader market realignment powered by government ...Read more
Property
Home guarantee scheme shake-up challenges Australia’s housing market players
From 1 October 2025, the expanded Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS) materially widens what first-home buyers can purchase and where. By sharply lifting price caps and relaxing eligibility settings, the ...Read more
Property
GSB’s first‑home buyer play: turning policy tailwinds into market share
Great Southern Bank’s latest results show that nearly one in three of its new mortgages now go to first‑home buyers—evidence of a fast‑moving market reshaped by government guarantees, easing rates and ...Read more
Property
Why investors are fleeing and renters are scrambling in Australia's housing maze
Australia’s rental market is tightening even as individual landlords sell down. New data points to a multi‑year investor retreat tied to higher holding costs and regulatory uncertainty, while prices ...Read more
Property
Australia's 5% deposit guarantee: Unlocking gains while balancing risks in the market share race
Can a bigger government guarantee fix housing access without fuelling prices? Australia is about to find out. The Albanese government’s expanded 5% deposit pathway aims to help 70,000 buyers, remove ...Read more
Property
Australia's bold move the 5% deposit scheme shaking up the housing market
Can a government guarantee replace lenders mortgage insurance without inflating prices or risk? Canberra’s accelerated 5% deposit scheme is a bold demand-side nudge in a supply‑constrained marketRead more
Property
When rates drop but stress sticks: exploring Australia's mortgage arrears dilemma
Headline numbers suggest arrears ease as rates come down. The reality in Australia is messier: broad measures dipped into mid‑2025, yet severe delinquencies and non‑bank portfolios remain under ...Read more
Property
Twice the demand: the case study behind Melbourne’s first‑home buyer surge
Melbourne has quietly engineered one of Australia’s most consequential housing turnarounds, with first‑home buyer demand running at roughly double the national pace and four of the top five buyer ...Read more
Property
First‑home buyers now anchor Australia’s mortgage growth — but the risk maths is changing
Great Southern Bank’s revelation that nearly one in three of its new mortgages went to first‑home buyers is not an outlier. It is the leading edge of a broader market realignment powered by government ...Read more
Property
Home guarantee scheme shake-up challenges Australia’s housing market players
From 1 October 2025, the expanded Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS) materially widens what first-home buyers can purchase and where. By sharply lifting price caps and relaxing eligibility settings, the ...Read more
Property
GSB’s first‑home buyer play: turning policy tailwinds into market share
Great Southern Bank’s latest results show that nearly one in three of its new mortgages now go to first‑home buyers—evidence of a fast‑moving market reshaped by government guarantees, easing rates and ...Read more
Property
Why investors are fleeing and renters are scrambling in Australia's housing maze
Australia’s rental market is tightening even as individual landlords sell down. New data points to a multi‑year investor retreat tied to higher holding costs and regulatory uncertainty, while prices ...Read more
Property
Australia's 5% deposit guarantee: Unlocking gains while balancing risks in the market share race
Can a bigger government guarantee fix housing access without fuelling prices? Australia is about to find out. The Albanese government’s expanded 5% deposit pathway aims to help 70,000 buyers, remove ...Read more
Property
Australia's bold move the 5% deposit scheme shaking up the housing market
Can a government guarantee replace lenders mortgage insurance without inflating prices or risk? Canberra’s accelerated 5% deposit scheme is a bold demand-side nudge in a supply‑constrained marketRead more
Property
When rates drop but stress sticks: exploring Australia's mortgage arrears dilemma
Headline numbers suggest arrears ease as rates come down. The reality in Australia is messier: broad measures dipped into mid‑2025, yet severe delinquencies and non‑bank portfolios remain under ...Read more
