Young Australians and foreign visitors have shown the effort they are making to get a roof over their heads in some of the country’s most expensive suburbs as the national rent crisis deepens.
Some employees live in a hostel to save money, others share a bedroom with friends, and still others offer up to $100 extra to secure a spot.
As landlords raise rents in capital cities — sometimes by as much as $600 a month — shocking images have emerged of long lines of hopefuls lining up to view properties across the country.
Saleswoman Elvira Brillantes shares a two-bedroom apartment in Bronte, Sydney’s exclusive beachside suburb, with café worker Alice Wendel and a third roommate for $930 a week.
Elvira Brillantes (left) and Alice Wendel (right), both from Sweden, share a bedroom so they can live in the beachside suburb of Bronte
“We increased[the price of our rent]by $100 more and that’s how we got it,” Ms. Brillantes said.
The friends moved from Sweden last year and rather than give up on the dream of living on the city’s iconic coastline, they decided to share a bedroom.
Mrs. Brillantes doesn’t think her landlord will raise the rent because they’re already paying more than the asking price, but worries she’ll have to get back into the rental market.
Freelance videographer James Mort has to weigh his options after receiving an email from his landlord last week.
Bondi tenant James Mort (pictured) has been told by his landlord that his rent is going up by $600 a month. Photo: NCA Newswire
His apartment, in Sydney’s exclusive suburb of Bondi, is getting more expensive at nearly $600 a month.
“I expected it, but that doesn’t take the sting out of it,” said Mr. Mort.
He said he finds it frustrating that more and more people are being priced out of their suburbs.
“I think Bondi has always had a reputation for being quite expensive compared to the rest of Sydney, but also has families that lived here long before it gentrified.”
“It feels very unfair that we have to pay more year after year as tenants, but we see no improvement in the quality of what we get and pay for.”
Tradies Fin Empson and Ollie Chan, both 19, also share a bedroom for $500 a week.
Tradies Ollie Chan and Fin Empson say the rental crisis in the UK is just as bad
The two from Leeds in the United Kingdom have been living and working in Australia for several months.
They’ve decided to live in a hostel instead of trying their luck in Sydney’s rental market.
“I’d much rather have my own room in a house than share a bedroom with my boyfriend, but I can’t afford it,” said Mr. Empsom.
The two tradies will return home mid-year to begin their university courses, but say the situation at home is just as dire.
“It’s much worse there,” Mr Empson said. “It’s just as high and the pay is worse.”
Waitress Phoebe Colson, 19, spent a month applying for jobs before finally getting a lease
Café waitress Phoebe Colson, 19, has only been a tenant for two days.
“I’ve been here for about a month now doing countless viewings a day and I just recently, literally two days ago, found something,” she said.
She shares a $400-a-week two-bedroom apartment in Mascot, which she says is “slightly higher” than she’d like, but it’s been such a “struggle” to find a place.
She described nightmarish scenes of waiting in lines wrapping around downtown blocks to inspect a property, a major concern as she set foot in a new city.
“Oh my god, they were awful,” she said.
“Hundreds of people would be waiting for the worst, tiny apartment ever.”
Walid Mikhael, 41, (pictured) doesn’t have to worry about rent increases as he rents a property owned by his cousin
Tailor Walid Mikhael, 41, is a landlord and tenant.
He owned and lived in a property when he was younger, but after the arrival of his twins, his young family decided to move into a bigger house.
“I’m in a unique situation because I’m renting a house owned by my cousin, so rent-wise I don’t really feel it,” he said.
“He’s not charging me as much as he should be, and in return I’m not charging my tenants as much.”
While interest rates have gone through the roof, he said he can still manage and avoid passing these costs on to his tenants.
When asked if he is concerned about the future of the city his children will grow up in, he said, “I am, I don’t like the way things are going.”
University student Anand Masih, 25, lives at home with his parents until he can save for a house.
University student Anand Masih says he will live at home with his parents until he can buy a house
Sydneysiders have endured nightmarish scenes of waiting in queues that wrap around inner city blocks to inspect just one home (pictured, a queue at a recent tenancy inspection)
Like several people we spoke to, he said he had never considered renting in Australia.
“I’ll stay home with my parents until I save enough money to buy a house,” he said.
“I know it might take a little longer, but I’ll get there eventually.”
Other over-20s in a similar boat said they had always known renting wasn’t possible for a number of reasons.
“It takes too long to save to buy a home when you spend all your money on rent,” said one.
A growing proportion of the younger generation have never considered leaving home before the age of 25, if anything at all to get some space and independence from their parents or simply move closer to work.