Perth’s crippling rental crisis sinks to new low as boat offered for $200 a week
WA renters are seeking any port in a storm as the State’s crippling rental crisis drags on, with a rundown boat moored on the Swan River advertised for hundreds of dollars a week.
The Facebook Marketplace advert offers a rustic 38ft boat for lease — and a small dinghy so the tenant can get to shore without getting wet — for $200 a week rent.
The sleeping quarters is a mattress in the windowless bow of the boat.
“Living on 38ft yacht $200pw — one of the most beautiful spots in the Swan River near Fremantle comes with a small tender to get to and from shore,” reads the advert.
“Hot water shower, storage space, kitchen, call for more details. Couples accepted.”
And as the rental crisis worsens, some West Aussies are keen on the idea of life of water.
Retiree and lifelong sailor Luke is actively looking for a boat to rent as his mortgage repayments shoot up to $1100 a week.
“Rather than downsize, my go-to is a boat . . . I’d be quite happy doing that,” he said.
“Even staying in a (yacht) club, by the time you pay membership fees and power and the pen fees, it works out to about the same as paying (council) rates.”
But not all private clubs and marinas allow members to live on their boats.
Public facilities managed by the Department of Transport generally only allow owners to live aboard for up to 10 days at a time, although travellers in a houseboat may be able to stay for up to six months in some circumstances.
Luke said he knows of others looking for houseboats to rent or buy, but he said it’s not for everyone.
“It’s romantic . . . but there’s a reality to living on a boat,” he said. “They’re small, they’re cramped.”
Floating homes have seen considerable uptake in other parts of the world. It’s a staple of the Netherlands, with Amsterdam having at least 3000 officially registered houseboats scattered across its canals.
But in Perth it’s a sign of a dire housing situation that doesn’t appear to be getting any better.
The unusual lease ad comes as the city’s vacancy rate sits at 0.7 per cent, after hitting a 42-year low of 0.6 per cent in December last year.
The Real Estate Institute of WA warns it’s the most prolonged rental crisis since REIWA began keeping such records in 1980.
It expects median rents will increase over the remainder of the year as 12-month fixed-term leases come up for renewal at current prices.
New REIWA data, compiled for The West Australian, shows there are 132 suburbs in Perth with no rental listings. A further 42 have only one home listed for rent online with REIWA.
The housing crisis has prompted a raft of other unusual rentals to hit the market, including $200 to rent a parking spot in the backyard of a Yanchep home.
While the caravan is not included, the advert, now removed, said access to water and sewerage was part of the deal.
A current advert on Marketplace is a nod to a bygone era, with one man offering to work around the house doing renovation and building work around the house — such as fencing or building a granny flat — in return for free board.
Several people have in recent weeks also advertised to find space in back gardens where they can pitch their tent and have occasional access to a laundry.
Real estate agent Ashleigh Goodchild, from Soco Realty, said the crisis was patchy, with rental supply remaining “hit and miss” depending the area.
“If people are looking in one area, I find they don’t want to look in surrounding places because they are very suburb-specific,” she said.
“Often this has to do with people wanting to be near certain schools.”
Anglicare WA boss Mark Glasson said the boat lease listing shows “how desperate the housing situation is” and that it “shows no sign of easing”.
“Too many people are still waiting far too long for safe, affordable housing,” he said.
“Anglicare WA, and organisations like ours, are seeing more people every day who are struggling to pay their rent, facing homelessness because they can’t afford another increase, forced into overcrowded, unsuitable, and unsafe accommodation, or sleeping rough.”
It comes as Foodbank WA reported a 47 per cent growth in demand for its services in May compared to May 2022, when the first of the last year’s persistent interest rates rises began.
In May, Perth’s By Name List recorded 1043 people experiencing homelessness, with 567 of those sleeping rough.
Source: News
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