Mum buys her son a house in Sydney’s inner West after he complains about rental crisis stress

A mother bought a house for her son after he complained that he was struggling with the rising cost of living, even though his rent was being paid by his parents.

Samantha Cook, who lives in the United States with her lawyer husband, flew to Sydney to visit her adult son.

Ms Cook said she caught up with him at dinner and was shocked at how stressed he seemed.

He complained that he was finding it difficult to make a living because of rising food prices and rent increases – even though his parents paid for it.

Mrs Cook messaged her husband after dinner suggesting that the couple buy an investment property to help their son.

“We may be able to spend less money because we pay his rent. We can relieve all this stress and take advantage of the fact that the dollar is 66 [US] cent,’ Mrs Cook told the The Sydney Morning Herald.

Ms Cook inspected a home in Sydney’s inner west on Friday and decided to bid on the property at auction the following day.

She described the purchase as a “very spontaneous move” and acknowledged that her family was in a fortunate position to help her son financially.

“We probably would have helped them anyway, but it was something that really stressed the kids out — the rent crisis and the cost of living,” she said.

Research firm PropTrack revealed that rents have risen 11.1 percent over the past 12 months, with the median rent nationwide set at $550 per week.

Social media users have shown no sympathy for Ms Cook’s son after he complained about his ‘stressful’ lifestyle.

“Imagine being stressed out about the cost of housing when you’re not paying for your own housing,” one wrote.

“That’s the kind of ‘stress’ I’d like to deal with.”

Another added, “Why was the little whip so stressed when his rent was already paid by mama?”

My son is in the same position. F****ed if I have the money to buy him a house,” a third wrote.

A fourth quipped, “Sometimes I’ll buy a takeaway coffee on a whim, and good old Samantha just goes around to pick up a property when she feels like it.”

Another person highlighted Australia’s “real” housing crisis, where families are forced to live without their cars or from a motel room unable to find a home to rent.

The national rental vacancy rate rose slightly in March to 1.1 percent, according to research by SQM.

The total number of rental vacancies across Australia currently stands at 32,814.

Managing Director of SQM Research Louis Christopher said the rental crisis in Sydney and Melbourne ‘continues’ despite rising vacancy rates.

Ms Cook inspected a home in Sydney’s inner west on Friday and decided to bid on the property at auction the following day (stock image)

The rental crisis in Australia’s regions has peaked with a decline in vacancy rates and rents in many smaller townships and coastal locations. This peak also extends to some of our smaller capitals, such as Hobart,’ Mr Christoper said.

“The same cannot be said of our two largest capitals where the rental crisis continues, driven by unbridled population growth, a slowdown in the respective construction pipeline and a return to city office from the regions.”

National housing offers also rose by 7.9 percent in March to 249,404 homes.

Mr Christopher added that the national lists remain well below the long-term average and that this is a major reason why the housing market has not corrected.

“During previous recessions, the total number of listings for a given month would typically exceed 300,000 properties for sale,” he said.

“We’re just not seeing those numbers in this cycle and it’s one of the main reasons why the housing market hasn’t corrected more than feared.”