The Cost of Rent – Perth Australia

 

A road yet to be completed (Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

Finding a roof in Perth.

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“Come in, have a look around, it’s not much but it’s a home”, the glib BMW driving real estate agent remarks with a hint of smugness, after narrowly avoiding the large bin on the driveway with his Bavarian wheels.

He must be busy, but being in the rental middleman game has to be one of the easiest gigs in Perth right now. The other day I went to the first viewing of a home only to discover 10 applications had already been received, all offering considerably more than the asking price. Maybe I should offer more, might I be more successful? Just one of the many thoughts on my mind touring through the current property, wondering why I was walking down hill in the master bedroom. It’s dated, not quite as old hat like the cork floored, vibrant orange Formica kitchen tops, finished in prison cell block walls, that greeted me in earlier places, however still lacking telephone and television points, slumped over aging stilts with an oven that could only still be there for sentimental reasons.

Surprisingly this small two-bedroom villa is sitting on a relatively large plot of over growing land. I ask how much upkeep of the garden would be required; “just keep the weeds down”. “Right, ok, such a big space you could stick three houses on it” I replied. Then the penny drops, “Yeah, well the man who owns it now bought the home at auction” (on the cheap I assume), “he is a developer and will bulldoze the current home after renting it out for 12 months or so”.

Until now we had the time to carefully choose a new place to live, knowing about the need to move for just over two months. Only problem is

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clashing dates would leave us with double rent to pay or a broken lease with massive fees and a bad reference for the next application.

Realistically this would leave only a couple of weeks to seriously apply for houses with a good available date. Two weeks in this market when applications of similar merit come by the box full. Add this to the ultimate catch of only being able to apply for one at a time, or risk forfeiting your option fee, crazy. My last application took a week before being turned down, leaving just 5 working days before moving out day.

That’s a good-looking crack in the wall there, matches the one above the damp patch in the bathroom, still walking around the home, now with more desperate couples filing in through the door. We all acknowledge each other with a hesitant smile in the knowledge these people are the competition, politely allowing them to pass us in the hallway before entering another dilapidated room.

A privately listed viewing in Scarborough, we walked through the door to roughly 6 couples sat in the living room frantically filling out application forms there and then, particulars strewn over the work-tops and carpets. “How do you compete with that” my exasperated girlfriend comments, “Not sure, but at this rate we will be reclining the seats and putting the family photo’s on the dashboard of the car!”

Now that I had exhausted all the small talk and questions about the house we take an application and make a swift exit, there is a real possibility that we will have no other choice but to apply for it and even though the property is in a real state, we also left in the knowledge we would have a real fight on our hands.

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Part of my expansion of Perth project, view more: 

Million Dollar Sand Pit | Suburban Perth  

To commission this or any of my work please feel free to email me:
philhill@philhillphotography.com 

  1. November 9, 2012

    Sounds absolutely dreadful. Is there an extreme housing shortage in Perth, then? Or are people forced to rent because they cannot afford to buy a home?

    I’m so sorry. Hope you’ve had some luck since this post. Hang in there!

  2. November 7, 2012

    Add into that the fact that you are new in Perth and so have no Australian references, no Australian credit and no useful contacts and you are in a very stressful situation indeed. Factor in a two year old and the urgent need for a house and you have a family on the brink of having to go back to the UK! Must be a very common scenario for many emigrating families. What a shame to have your dreams ruined by a ridiculously overpriced and under regulated rental market.

  3. October 25, 2012

    Oh I hear you, loud and clear!!

    • October 25, 2012

      @linda Davey

      I have been in some sticky rental situations when I was living in London but none quite as cut throat as here in Perth!