This Cost of Living Update highlights problems of rental affordability in South Australia.
Drawing on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the South Australian government, the report shows that the increasing cost of renting has coincided with a decline in the provision of public housing and concludes that greater investment in public housing will boost supply and help all renters.
Many of the levers of rental affordability lie with the federal government, but the biggest thing the state government could do would be to invest in social housing. This would provide much needed housing for those who otherwise struggle it in the private market, but it would also provide an economic stimulus and increase the supply of rental properties – which could benefit all renters through less competition for properties and lower prices.
Download No.49, December Quarter 2021 - Rental Affordability