Why $130,000 a year is no longer enough to avoid housing stress in WA

A yearly salary of $130,000 is still not enough to safeguard against rising rents in Western Australia, new research reveals.

The state’s north has emerged as the nation’s most expensive region to rent in, according to the latest Priced Out report from affordable housing coalition Everybody’s Home.

The report, released on Monday, shines a light on the sharp rise in rental prices in recent years, and measures how much of a person’s weekly income is spent on rent, based on median weekly prices.

It set out that no more than 30 per cent of a household budget should be allocated to rents to avoid financial stress.

Perth renters on low incomes would spend as much as 97 per cent of their weekly wage on the median asking rent for a unit (in the case of someone earning $40,000 a year).

Even someone earning $130,000 a year and living in Perth would spend 36 per cent of their income on housing, “demonstrating that Perth remains unaffordable even for many higher-income households”.

In the Pilbara and Kimberley – jointly referred to as “northern WA” – median rents exceed the disposable income of people earning $40,000-$50,000 a year, and is 99 per cent of the income of someone earning $60,000 a year.

“While Perth remains one of the country’s least affordable capital cities, some regional markets are even more expensive relative to local incomes,” the report states.

In Busselton, Sharon, who asked her last name not be used, knows all too well the pressures of rising rents.

At 55 years old, she would prefer to live alone. But, with her rent at $700 a week, and her Centrelink medical support income only providing about $515 a week, she is forced to sublet her home, which brings its own challenges.

“It’s only affordable for me because I’m sharing with two other people,” Sharon said.

“I desperately would love to live in my own place where I look after me, and I look after my dog.

“Some [housemates] just don’t get it, and then when they no longer want to live here, they just pack up and leave.

“I’m left with the rent to pay on the room if nobody else is in there immediately.