April RentRabbit.com.au Tenant Opportunity Report reveals Hobart’s top 10 tenant-friendly suburbs

New research commissioned by RentRabbit.com.au has found Hobart’s standout suburbs for tenants who want to live in good locations but have only average incomes.

The quarterly RentRabbit.com.au Tenant Opportunity Report identifies the top 10 suburbs in Hobart where tenants can find affordable rents in decent suburbs that are within commuting distance of the CBD.

To make sure locations are tenant-friendly, suburbs are excluded if their SA3 is more than 100km from the CBD.

(The Australian Bureau of Statistics refers to a cluster of suburbs as a ‘statistical area 3’, or a ‘SA3’. SA3s often closely align to local government areas.)

Suburbs are also excluded if they have a low socio-economic status, as measured by having a SEIFA socio-economic score of less than 4.

(A SEIFA economic score is an Australian Bureau of Statistics measure that ranks areas in Australia according to relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage. If a suburb has a score of 4, it means it’s in the fourth decile [i.e. 31-40%] in terms of its socio-economic position.)

That leaves a small list of Hobart suburbs. To establish a top 10 ranking, these suburbs are then ranked based on weekly rental rates (from lowest to highest).

All the suburbs had a median weekly rent of $550 or below and were located within 20km of the CBD.

RentRabbit.com.au co-founder Ben Pretty said it’s encouraging to see that tenants still have some decent options, even if the odds are stacked against them in the current market.

“Hobart’s vacancy rate has been very low for almost a decade now, which has made it harder for tenants to find accommodation and has led to sharp rental increases,” he said.

“It’s definitely a landlord’s market in many parts of Hobart, and I’ve been hearing some really harrowing stories of tenants doing it hard, especially families on lower incomes.

“The aim of the RentRabbit.com.au Tenant Opportunity Report is to show tenants that although conditions are tough right now, it’s still possible to find somewhere to live that’s affordable, desirable and commutable.”

Top 10 ranking

Key stats on the top 10 suburbs

1. The house market of Old Beach (Brighton)

2. The house market of Bellerive (Hobart – North East)

3. The house market of Mount Nelson (Hobart Inner)

4. The house market of Howrah (Hobart – North East)

5. The house market of Kingston (Hobart – South and West)

6. The house market of Blackmans Bay (Hobart – South and West)

7. The house market of South Hobart (Hobart Inner)

8. The house market of Lindisfarne (Hobart – North East)

9. The house market of Lauderdale (Hobart – North East)

10. The house market of Lenah Valley (Hobart Inner)