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AustraliaCommunity profile

Western Australia

Housing rental payments

In Western Australia, 19.4% of renting households were paying $450 or more per week in rent in 2021.

Rental payments can be a better measure of the cost of housing in Western Australia than mortgage repayments because they are not contingent on length of occupancy or equity in the dwelling.

High rental payments may indicate desirable areas with mobile populations who prefer to rent, or a housing shortage, or gentrification. Low rental payments may indicate public housing (check Tenure Type), or areas where low income households move by necessity for a lower cost of living.

Rental payments are not directly comparable over time because of inflation. For comparison of rental payments over time, go to Housing Rental Quartiles.

Further reading: How can Councils influence affordable housing.

Q:

Derived from the Census questions:

'How much does your household pay for this dwelling?' and 'Is this dwelling (owned outright, owned with a mortgage etc.)'

Weekly housing rental payments
Western Australia - Households (Enumerated)2021
Weekly rental amountNumber%Regional Australia %
Less than $1008,4233.13.7
$100-$14916,2496.06.7
$150-$19914,4725.38.2
$200-$24919,5967.210.6
$250-$29930,35911.213.2
$300-$34943,48316.013.3
$350-$39943,38716.012.0
$400-$44930,42111.29.2
$450-$49918,9117.06.6
$500-$54910,9394.03.8
$550-$64910,7133.94.0
$650-$7494,8711.81.6
$750-$8492,6961.00.7
$850+4,6741.71.2
Not stated12,7044.75.1
Total households renting271,898100.0100.0
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2021. Compiled and presented in profile.id by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information

Dominant groups

Analysis of the weekly housing rental payments of households in Western Australia compared to Regional Australia shows that there was a larger proportion of households paying high rental payments ($450 per week or more), and a smaller proportion of households with low rental payments (less than $250 per week).

Overall, 19.4% of households were paying high rental payments, and 21.6% were paying low payments, compared with 18.0% and 29.3% respectively in Regional Australia.

The major differences between the housing rental payments of Western Australia and Regional Australia were:

  • A larger percentage of $350-$399 (16.0% compared to 12.0%)
  • A larger percentage of $300-$349 (16.0% compared to 13.3%)
  • A smaller percentage of $200-$249 (7.2% compared to 10.6%)
  • A smaller percentage of $150-$199 (5.3% compared to 8.2%)

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