The top 10 most affordable suburbs to rent in Canberra

With Canberra’s median asking rent for houses still the highest in the nation and units the second-highest, after Sydney, Canberra renters are feeling the squeeze when looking for a new home.

But don’t lose hope just yet as there are still affordable houses and units on the rental market.

According to the Domain Rental Report for the March quarter 2020, Canberra’s median asking rent for houses was $580 per week and $480 per week for units.

When looking at houses, Belconnen was the most affordable suburb to rent with a median of $440 per week, up 2.3 per cent year-on-year.

This was followed by Holt in Belconnen at $470, up 2.2 per cent over the year; and Gordon in Tuggeranong at $475, down 2.1 per cent over the year.

Despite houses in Belconnen recording the most affordable rents, Badenoch Real Estate leasing manager Jayne Spice said apartments were the more popular option for rentals in the suburb.

“There are a lot more apartments available than houses and the houses that are listed are courtyard properties with two or three bedrooms but on smaller blocks of land,” Ms Spice said.

“When you look at the properties that are on the rental market in the Belconnen area, they’re a lot smaller and older than what you’d get out in, say, Gungahlin.”

Belconnen region suburbs made up five of the top 10 most affordable suburbs to rent a house with Belconnen, Holt, Florey, Cook and Page. According to Ms Spice, the Belconnen region has more owner-occupiers than other districts.

“You’ll find more homes are available to rent in Gungahlin because there are more investment properties, while there are more owner-occupier homes around Belconnen,” she said.

Ms Spice also noted that renters were more drawn to houses in Gungahlin because of their modern characteristics including ducted heating and cooling, appealing high energy efficiency ratings, and bigger blocks of land.

“Page has a lot of ex-government houses which are three-bedroom and one-bathroom homes that are renovated but they are still quite small, so landlords aren’t seeking for higher rents like if you were to go out to Gungahlin,” she said.

The latest figures showed Gungahlin region’s median asking rent for houses was $580, up 3.6 per cent over the year – $90 more than renting a house in the suburb of Belconnen and bang on the ACT’s overall median asking rent for houses.

Ms Spice anticipates Canberra’s median asking rent for houses will continue to increase, despite concerns looming amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“There is still interest coming through for properties and we’re still renting properties,” Ms Spice said.

“It’s challenging times but we’re adjusting to the climate as well as we can … we’re doing things a little bit different than we’re used to but the rental market is still strong.”

As for Canberra units, Hughes in Woden Valley led the charge as the most affordable suburb to rent a unit with a median of $340 per week, up 3 per cent over the year.

Lyons in Woden Valley came in a close second with a median of $343, down 1.4 per cent over the year.

Rounding out the top three affordable suburbs to rent a unit was Curtin, also in Woden Valley, at $373 per week, a dip of 2 per cent over the year.

Property manager Mela Tonga of Independent, who specialises in the Woden Valley area, said the region was the affordable option for those “who want to maintain low-living costs yet still receive the perks of having access to the complex facilities”.

“For units within Hughes’ median of $340 and [Chifley’s median of] $415, renters can expect a unit in the older developments with one-bedroom, one-bathroom,” Ms Tonga said.

“But for new apartments, which we are seeing more of coming onto the rental market, renters are likely to pay over $440 per week just for a one-bedroom.”

With five Woden Valley suburbs featuring in the top 10 most affordable suburbs to rent a unit, Ms Tonga expects Woden units to become a more popular option for renters in the future.

“We are heading into the colder months now where things usually slow down but we haven’t seen that yet … the next 12 months will see a change in those prices and I expect it to bump up,” she said.

“Woden being located on the fringes of the Inner South area with an approximate travel time to Canberra’s CBD of 15 minutes or less will allow renters to enjoy the convenience of the location yet away from the hustle and bustle of the CBD.”

Note: Median rental house prices are derived from suburbs which have had more than 50 listings.

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