{"id":101234,"date":"2025-02-11T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-10T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/?p=101234"},"modified":"2025-02-10T22:47:14","modified_gmt":"2025-02-10T11:47:14","slug":"two-in-three-retirees-renting-privately","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/two-in-three-retirees-renting-privately\/","title":{"rendered":"Two in Three Retirees Renting Privately Live in Poverty \u2013 Here\u2019s Why"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A growing number of <strong>Australian retirees<\/strong> who rent in the private market are living in <strong>poverty<\/strong>, with many struggling to afford housing as they age. A new report from the <strong>Grattan Institute<\/strong> highlights the increasing financial pressure on older renters, warning that the situation is set to deteriorate unless urgent policy changes are made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The report found that <strong>two in three retirees<\/strong> who rent privately live below the <strong>poverty line<\/strong>, and <strong>half of all older renters<\/strong> have savings of less than <strong>$25,000<\/strong>. With declining rates of home ownership among middle-aged Australians, the number of older people facing rental stress is expected to grow in the coming years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Financial hardship among retired renters<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/grattan.edu.au\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Grattan Institute<\/a>, Australia\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/australia-housing-shortfall-struggling\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"101038\">housing <\/a>affordability crisis is hitting retirees particularly hard. While many older Australians rely on their homes as a financial safety net, those who rent privately face <strong>ongoing financial insecurity<\/strong> in retirement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The report reveals that among the <strong>poorest 40 per cent<\/strong> of Australians aged <strong>55 to 64<\/strong>, median net financial wealth is less than <strong>$40,000<\/strong>\u2014a sum that offers little protection against rising rents. For those already retired and renting, <strong>financial hardship is widespread<\/strong>, with the vast majority dependent on government support payments that <strong>do not cover housing costs<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although the federal government has increased <strong>Commonwealth Rent Assistance<\/strong> (CRA) by 27 per cent in recent years, the Grattan Institute argues that the increase remains insufficient. Even with this support, a single retiree relying on income support can afford only:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>4 per cent of one-bedroom rental properties in <strong>Sydney<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>13 per cent in <strong>Brisbane<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>14 per cent in <strong>Melbourne<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Policy recommendations and economic impact<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To address the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/homelessness-38000-australians-trapped\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"100906\">crisis<\/a>, the report\u2019s lead author, <strong>Brendan Coates<\/strong>, has called for a <strong>50 per cent increase<\/strong> in rent assistance for singles and a <strong>40 per cent increase<\/strong> for couples. This adjustment, costing an estimated <strong>$2 billion annually<\/strong>, would enable retirees to rent <strong>at least 25 per cent<\/strong> of the cheapest one-bedroom properties in major cities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The report suggests that the <strong>cost of increased rent assistance<\/strong> could be offset by <strong>reforming tax policies<\/strong>, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Tightening superannuation tax breaks<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Curbing negative gearing<\/strong>, which allows investors to claim deductions on rental losses<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Halving the capital gains tax discount<\/strong>, which reduces tax on profits from asset sales<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>These measures, the report argues, would not only help fund additional rent assistance but also address <strong>broader inequalities<\/strong> in <strong>Australia\u2019s housing market<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Without substantial intervention, the number of renting retirees at risk of homelessness will continue to rise. \u201cAustralia is <strong>failing too many retirees who rent<\/strong>,\u201d Coates said. \u201cOnly a further substantial boost to rent assistance can ensure that all Australians get the dignified retirement they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Thousands of older Australians who rent are living in poverty, unable to keep up with rising housing costs. A new report reveals that two in three retired renters fall below the poverty line, with savings running dangerously low. Even with government support, affordable housing is out of reach for many.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":101266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-housing","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101234"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":101261,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101234\/revisions\/101261"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101266"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}