Regional NSW hit by biggest rent increases

Residents in regional NSW are facing the highest rent increases in the state, prompting warnings that homelessness will continue to surge in the regions. According to the data from SQM Research Weekly Rents Index, in the local region there was a 5.4 per cent rent increase in the past year, making it one of the top ten highest increases across the state. In the past year rents are up 12 per cent in Tamworth, 10 per cent in the Murray Region, and 8.1 per cent in the Hunter, according to the data. Seven of the top 10 areas, including the local region that came in seventh, for rent increases are outside Sydney. “Rents soared in the regions during the Covid-19 pandemic and now we are seeing them take off once more,” Homelessness NSW CEO Dominique Rowe said. “This gives us great concern that more people will be forced into homelessness because they cannot afford the roof over their heads. “In regional areas there is already a dire shortage of social housing, and homelessness services are severely unfunded and overwhelmed. "When you add surging rents into the mix, we’ve got a recipe for disaster.” It comes after a report by ACOSS, released during anti-poverty week last week which found that rising rents were a major cause of increased poverty rates. According to the ACOSS report the number of people sleeping rough across the state has soared to 66 per cent, from 1,314 in 2020 to 2,192 in 2025. Many of the places with highest increases in rough sleeping are regional, including Inverell, Nambucca, and Bathurst. “Homelessness and rough sleeping are rising rapidly in many regional areas," Ms Rowe said. "The government must invest more in homelessness services and urgently build more social housing which is at historically low levels.”

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