The 10 most affordable Canberra suburbs in which to rent a house: Domain Rent Report

Canberra’s overall median weekly rental price for houses has dropped for the first time in two years, but there are particular suburbs within the capital where tenants can save even further. 

The latest Domain Rent Report showed that six suburbs within the Belconnen region, two in Tuggeranong and one in both Gungahlin and Woden Valley were the most affordable Canberra areas in which to rent a house.

Taking the top spot as the most affordable suburb in which to rent a house was Belconnen itself, with a weekly median of just $540, despite having a 12.5 per cent increase year-on-year. 

After Belconnen came the Woden Valley suburb of Phillip at $575, and then Holt, another Belconnen suburb, at $590. 

 Other Belconnen suburbs featured in the top 10 included Scullin, Macgregor, Latham and Cook. Each of the areas posted a significant jump in their rental prices year-on-year, despite their relative affordability. 

While these Belconnen suburbs recorded more affordable housing options for renters, senior property manager Darryl Taylor of Blackshaw Belconnen said the region did not lack in quality. 

“[These suburbs] are in a position where they are still close enough to the city, but just a little bit further away than other areas, which will potentially affect prices comparatively,” he said. 

“But realistically, they are still within a reasonable travel distance and have great facilities that are comparable to other areas.

“The affordability of suburbs like Macgregor and Holt isn’t reflective of any lesser quality or anything of that nature. It does reflect better value, rather than being a bad area.” 

Domain chief of research and economics Dr Nicola Powell said the drops in rental prices in Canberra suburbs were more regular for houses than units, so suburb affordability may decline in future quarters.

“When you look at the suburbs, there are more declines in houses than units, and I think that might be playing into that affordability factor regarding what people can actually afford to rent,” she said. 

“Canberra, geographically, is a lot smaller than other areas around Australia, and people can much more easily move around suburbs.

“What is interesting for Canberra, however, is that we are seeing the same trend we are seeing in other cities – houses aren’t holding up their rents as well.” 

While there had been an overall drop in house rents in Canberra, Taylor said he couldn’t see significant declines in price, as the market “has always been relatively stable”. 

“I think the situation is mostly tied up with the cost of living increasing, people are being a bit more budget conscious at the moment, and that, I think, is bringing the prices down,” he said.