By Kerri-Anne Mesner
TWO-bedroom rental flats in Sunshine and St Albans-Deer Park remain the lowest median rents in metropolitan Melbourne, despite a six per cent rental rise during the past 12 months.
The Victorian March Quarter Rental Report released early this month showed two-bedroom flats in Sunshine and St Albans-Deer Park were the only metropolitan areas on a list of the 10 lowest median rents for such flats in Victoria.
Sunshine’s median rent for two-bedroom flats was $155, while St Albans-Deer Park was $160.
Barry Plant Real Estate St Albans’ Sam La Spina said the lower end of the two-bedroom rental market had rents at $150 to $160, with the majority of people renting being low-income earners.
He said he saw a lot of single people and single parent families renting such flats in St Albans.
Sweeney Real Estate Agent Sunshine property manager Nina Husejnovic said she had seen properties in Sunshine rented at higher than the median price in the State Government’s report and rental prices had been dramatically increasing during the past seven months.
She said this month there was a one-bedroom flat in Deer Park rented for $145 per week and other slightly better quality one-bedroom flats were rented for $155 per week.
Mrs Husejnovic said she had noticed a lot of Indian students were renting the cheaper flats, along with Sudanese and Somalis, mostly low-income earners.
She said there had not been too many people on welfare benefits applying for rental properties because they cannot afford the rent.
State Housing Minister Richard Wynne said that average weekly rent across metropolitan Melbourne was $260.
“This is an increase of six per cent in real terms and the highest annual increase in real metropolitan rents since March 1998,” he said.
“Clearly, the Commonwealth’s Rent Assistance is not working.
“Given the current Federal Government has no interest in this issue, I welcome proposals from the Federal Opposition who are exploring options for expanding the supply of social housing and making home ownership and renting more affordable.”
Mr Wynne said that at the Housing Ministers’ Conference in Darwin in early July the State and Territories Ministers called on the Federal Government to rethink Commonwealth Rent Assistance and commit to boosting the supply of affordable housing across the country.
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The March Quarter Rental Report found Melbourne City Council and the local government areas of Bayside, Boroondara, Glen Eira, Manningham, Port Phillip, Yarra and Stonnington have the least affordable private rentals despite having the majority of rental opportunities.
The most expensive two-bedroom flats continue to be in Southbank-Docklands, CBD-St Kilda Road and Port Melbourne.
The most expensive houses are in Malvern, Brighton and Port Melbourne.
The rental report is produced for the government each quarter by the Victorian Office of Housing and is based on data from the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority.
