Where to look for a cheap rental: Sydney's 12 best value suburbs for tenants

Sydney is the most expensive city in the country for tenants but there are still some pockets of value where homes can be rented for a discount, new data shows.

While the average advertised rent for an apartment is $520 a week, Domain Group data found tenants looking for apartments didn’t have to look far out of the city to find suburbs far cheaper than the city-wide average.

In Enmore, the cheapest apartment rental suburb within five kilometres of the city, the average advertised rent was $435 a week. Those willing to look within 10 kilometres for a cheaper location could consider Croydon Park, where the average advertised rental was $390 a week.

But those looking for houses would be faced with paying a minimum of $600 for anything within the inner suburbs.

The cheapest suburb for houses within five kilometres of the CBD was Waterloo, at $675 a week. Broadening the search to 10 kilometres and the most affordable was Arncliffe at $610.

“Vacancy rates have eased a little bit but it’s still an expensive market for renters who are clearly looking for value for money,” Domain Group chief economist Andrew Wilson said.

Those looking for a discount off the $540 a week average for a house would need to look within 20 kilometres of the CBD to Granville, where the average rental is $470.

And even looking in these cheaper areas further away from the city still left tenants facing the hurdle of getting accepted by the landlord.

“There could be a line of 50 people. There are often not a lot of rental listings in these suburbs and cheaper areas can be even more competitive,” Dr Wilson said.

For those who want a competitive edge, it’s important to take a close look at the rental movements in a suburb.

An investor will want to ensure there won’t be too much development occurring, said Diaswati Mardiasmo, national research manager at PRDnationwide.

But a tenant may benefit from looking at where supply is going into a surplus.

Similarly, while landlords will want to focus on areas where vacancy rates are declining, tenants may want to look at areas where the rate is rising.

“It’s not enough just to look at at the moment vacancy rates though, you need to look at the trend,” Ms Mardiasmo said.

Sydney’s vacancy rate climbed 0.3 per cent in the year to January 2016, Domain Group data shows, but the 2.1 per cent overall rate varied significantly from area to area.

For apartments, Camden, Campbelltown, Hawkesbury, Parramatta and Penrith were among the LGAs with vacancy rates above 2.1 per cent.

For houses, Blacktown, Camden, Penrith and Ryde had higher than average vacancies.

And many of the further-flung areas not only had higher vacancy rates, but cheaper rents as well. Blacktown’s Blackett was the cheapest suburb for tenants looking to rent a house within 40 kilometres of Sydney, with a weekly advertised rent of $330 a week.

Campbelltown’s Minto was the cheapest suburb for apartment tenants – at $310 a week.

Inglis Property Macarthur property manager, Fia Foglia, said tenants should expect to pay a premium for newer homes, with ducted air conditioning, dishwashers, pools, sheds, double garages and larger properties with four or more bedrooms.

“[The] main way for tenants to ensure they are not overpaying for a rental is to research what is available in the area and compare what each home offers for the price,” Ms Foglia said.

Rich Harvey, buyers agent and chief executive of Propertybuyer, said tenants usually looked for areas close to key public transport networks, shopping centres and education spots.

“Suburbs that are expected to experience a dramatic increase in supply of rental properties may see some rents lowered or vacancies rates rise – but over time this excess supply may be absorbed and rents return to normal,” Mr Harvey said.

“Tenants want lifestyle appeal, low maintenance properties, walking distance to key amenities and secure buildings where they can feel safe.”