Many Australians determined to live in desirable suburbs are renting beyond their means, research reveals.
Data from comparison website, finder.com.au, found that city-dwellers were spending more than a third of their income to rent a home close to trendy bar, cafes and work.
Finder.com.au consumer advocate, Bessie Hassan, said the analysis showed Sydney-siders were the highest spenders when it came to renting, spending up to 38 per cent of their weekly income on rent.
“This generation of renters are not renting while they save for their dream home — they are renting their dream home instead,” she said.
“It’s alarming that they are overstretching themselves. It’s a case of ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ for some who are living in properties they can’t afford.”
The demand to lease in some suburbs has seen Sydney renters pay more than they would for a mortgage, Hassan said.
“Interestingly Sydney renters spend a higher proportion of their weekly income paying rent than what some people are committing to their mortgages,” she said.
“If you’re forking our more than 30 per cent of your income to pay for housing, then you are considered to be in housing stress.
“[However], some have just become accustomed to the ‘good life’ of being close to everything and are not prepared to give that up to get onto the property ladder.”
