What share of older households in Australia rent?

In 2019-20, 16.0 per cent of households with a reference person aged 65 to 74 and 12.9 per cent of households with a reference person aged 75 and over rented their home, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics Survey of Income and Housing. Applying these rates to the ABS household counts gives an estimated 364,000 renter households across the two groups.

Older renters in Australia: housing stress, Rent Assistance and social housing

Q: How many social housing households in Australia have an older main tenant?

At 30 June 2025, 142,099 social housing households had a main tenant aged 65 and over, equivalent to 34.5 per cent of households in public housing, community housing and state owned and managed Indigenous housing, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. In public housing alone, the share of households with a main tenant aged 65 and over was 37.0 per cent.

Published 16 Oct 2026

Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over: 409,570; Australia, March 2026, up from 233,380 in June 2013
Share of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over in rental stress: 32.7%; After Rent Assistance, March 2026. 68.7% would have been in rental stress without it
Median housing costs, private renters aged 65 and over: 37.4%; Share of gross household income in 2019-20, compared with 22.3% for all private renter households
Social housing households with a main tenant aged 65 and over: 142,099; 34.5% of public, community and state owned and managed Indigenous housing households at 30 June 2025

How an ageing population is changing housingThe number of older households, the dwellings they live in and what an older population means for housing demand and construction.

How old are the people who leave Australia?Departures from Australia by age group, including people at and past retirement age, from ABS overseas migration data.

Section 01 · Older renters

How many older Australians rent their home?

An estimated 364,000 Australian households with a reference person aged 65 and over rented their home in 2019-20, representing about 14.7 per cent of all households in that age group. BuildStreet calculated the estimate from Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Survey of Income and Housing renting rates and household counts for the two age groups¹. The estimate is subject to the survey’s margins of error.

In 2019-20, 16.0 per cent of households with a reference person aged 65 to 74 and 12.9 per cent of those with a reference person aged 75 and over rented their home¹. Across households of all ages, 31.4 per cent rented.

The ABS reported margins of error of 1.9 percentage points for households aged 65 to 74 and 2.3 percentage points for households aged 75 and over¹. The 3.1 percentage point gap between the two age groups is only slightly larger than the margin of error for the difference, of about 3.0 percentage points.

In 2019-20, 9.5 per cent of households with a reference person aged 65 to 74 rented from a private landlord, compared with 3.8 per cent that rented from a state or territory housing authority¹. For households with a reference person aged 75 and over, the shares were 6.0 and 3.8 per cent, respectively.

The ABS did not release results from its 2023-24 Survey of Income and Housing, so estimates by age are available only up to 2019-20². Results from the 2025-26 survey are expected from mid-2027.

How many Age Pension recipients in Australia rent?

In June 2026, 287,680 Age Pension recipients paid private rent, equivalent to 10.6 per cent of the 2,718,425 people receiving the pension, according to Department of Social Services (DSS) payment recipient data³. A further 99,110 Age Pension recipients paid rent to a government housing authority, and 27,090 paid rent to a housing organisation other than a government authority.

In June 2026, 749,330 Age Pension recipients, or 27.6 per cent, did not own a home³. An Age Pension recipient counted as a homeowner may not live in the home they own.

Households renting by age of household reference person, Australia, 2019-20 — Margins of error at the 95% level are ±1.9 percentage points for ages 65 to 74 and ±2.3 for ages 75 and over, and range up to ±5.1 for ages 15 to 24. Includes renters from private landlords, state or territory housing authorities and other landlords.

Age is the age of the household reference person. Figures in brackets are the 95% margins of error in percentage points. All renters includes other landlord types, and the tenure shares exclude other tenure types, so the rows do not add to 100. The ABS randomly adjusts cells to protect confidentiality.
Housing tenure of older households, Australia, 2019-20
Tenure and landlord type	Aged 65 to 74 (%)	Aged 75 and over (%)	All households (%)
Owner without a mortgage	68.1 (±1.7)	79.4 (±2.8)	29.5 (±0.8)
Owner with a mortgage	13.4 (±1.8)	3.7 (±1.0)	36.8 (±0.9)
Renter, private landlord	9.5 (±1.5)	6.0 (±1.6)	26.2 (±1.0)
Renter, state or territory housing authority	3.8 (±0.8)	3.8 (±1.0)	2.9 (±0.3)
All renters	16.0 (±1.9)	12.9 (±2.3)	31.4 (±1.0)
Households (number)	1,404,900	1,076,300	9,732,400

Source · ABS Housing Occupancy and Costs, 2019-20, data cube 6, Table 6.1.

Section 02 · Change since 2013

How has the number of older renters receiving Rent Assistance changed since 2013?

The number of income units aged 65 and over receiving Commonwealth Rent Assistance increased from 233,380 in June 2013 to 409,570 in March 2026, an increase of 176,190 income units, or 75.5 per cent, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)⁴. Over the same period, the number of income units of all ages receiving Rent Assistance increased by 11.5 per cent, from 1,267,980 to 1,413,800.

The share of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over increased from 18.4 per cent in June 2013 to 29.0 per cent in March 2026, an increase of 10.6 percentage points⁴.

The share of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over fell from 24.8 per cent in June 2019 to 20.0 per cent in June 2020, while the number of income units of all ages receiving Rent Assistance increased from 1,285,940 to 1,700,165⁴.

Figures by age for June 2017 are not comparable with other years, because the AIHW changed how it determines the age of an income unit that year⁴. The data does not identify why the number of older recipients increased.

Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over, Australia, June 2013 to March 2026 — Figures by age are available from June 2013. June 2017 is not shown because the AIHW changed how it assigns the age of an income unit that year. The final column is the March quarter, not June.

Counts at the last Friday of June each year, and of March 2026. Age is the age of the person receiving the income unit’s primary payment. Age figures for June 2017 are not comparable with other years because the AIHW changed how it assigns the reference person that year. Counts are rounded to the nearest 5.
Commonwealth Rent Assistance income units by age, Australia, June 2013 to March 2026
Quarter	Aged 65 and over	Aged 75 and over	All ages	Aged 65 and over, share of all (%)
June 2013	233,380	103,255	1,267,980	18.4
June 2014	246,540	108,200	1,315,385	18.7
June 2015	263,365	114,605	1,343,430	19.6
June 2016	277,980	120,565	1,345,985	20.7
June 2017	n/a	n/a	1,343,430	n/a
June 2018	304,000	132,115	1,311,185	23.2
June 2019	319,160	140,160	1,285,940	24.8
June 2020	340,035	149,020	1,700,165	20.0
June 2021	355,155	156,990	1,491,090	23.8
June 2022	363,460	166,290	1,347,900	27.0
June 2023	370,185	172,755	1,263,890	29.3
June 2024	380,545	179,965	1,311,350	29.0
June 2025	396,985	189,260	1,377,655	28.8
March 2026	409,570	196,385	1,413,800	29.0

Source · AIHW Commonwealth Rent Assistance in Australia: quarterly data, Table CRA.1.

Section 03 · Housing stress

In 2019-20, 10.9 per cent of lower-income households with a reference person aged 65 and over spent more than 30 per cent of gross household income on housing costs. This compared with 25.1 per cent of lower-income households of all ages, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Survey of Income and Housing⁵.

The share of lower-income households spending more than 30 per cent of their income on housing was 13.2 per cent for those with a reference person aged 65 to 74 and 8.8 per cent for those aged 75 and over⁵. The 4.4 percentage point gap between the two age groups is larger than the margin of error for the difference, of about 3.3 percentage points.

The 30/40 measure counts a household as being in housing stress when it has a lower income and spends more than 30 per cent of its gross income on housing costs. The ABS defines lower-income households as those between the 3rd and 40th percentiles of household income, adjusted for household size and composition⁵.

In 2019-20, 58.0 per cent of lower-income households of all ages that rented from a private landlord spent more than 30 per cent of their gross household income on housing costs⁵.

Lower-income households paying more than 30% of gross income on housing costs, by age, Australia, 2019-20 — Lower-income households contain people between the 3rd and 40th percentiles of equivalised disposable household income. Margins of error at the 95% level are ±2.3 percentage points for ages 65 to 74 and ±2.4 for ages 75 and over, and range up to ±9.0 for ages 15 to 24.

Lower-income households are those containing people between the 3rd and 40th percentiles of equivalised disposable household income. Margins of error are at the 95% level, in percentage points.
Lower-income households paying more than 30% of gross income on housing costs, by age, Australia, 2019-20
Age of household reference person	Paying more than 30% (%)	Margin of error (±)
15 to 24	54.9	9.0
25 to 34	43.0	5.4
35 to 44	37.2	4.8
45 to 54	34.3	4.8
55 to 64	25.3	3.5
65 to 74	13.2	2.3
75 and over	8.8	2.4
All ages	25.1	1.4
65 and over	10.9	1.7

Source · ABS Housing Occupancy and Costs, 2019-20, data cube 5, Table 5.2.

Section 04 · Private renters

Private renter households with a reference person aged 65 and over spent a median of 37.4 per cent of their gross household income on housing costs in 2019-20. This compared with 22.3 per cent for private renter households of all ages, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Survey of Income and Housing⁶.

The median was 34.4 per cent for private renter households with a reference person aged 65 to 74 and 40.2 per cent for those aged 75 and over⁶. The difference between the two age groups is within the survey’s margins of error, of 4.9 and 4.5 percentage points.

Both older age groups of private renters recorded higher medians than every younger age group. Among younger households, the medians ranged from 20.1 per cent for those aged 25 to 34 to 26.1 per cent for those aged 15 to 24⁶. The margins of error for the older groups do not overlap with those of any younger group.

Median housing costs as a share of gross household income, renters by landlord type and age, Australia, 2019-20 — Margins of error at the 95% level for private renters are ±4.9 percentage points for ages 65 to 74 and ±4.5 for ages 75 and over. For housing authority renters they are ±0.7 and ±0.8. The ABS does not publish one for housing authority renters aged 15 to 24.

Section 05 · Rent Assistance

How much does Rent Assistance reduce rental stress for older renters?

In March 2026, 32.7 per cent of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over were in rental stress after the payment. Without it, 68.7 per cent would have been in rental stress, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)⁴. The number in rental stress was 133,115 income units after Rent Assistance, compared with 279,760 without it.

The AIHW defines rental stress as spending more than 30 per cent of gross income on rent after Rent Assistance has been deducted. Gross income includes income support payments⁴.

In March 2026, 38.7 per cent of income units aged 65 to 69 were in rental stress after Rent Assistance, compared with 28.0 per cent of those aged 75 and over⁴. The share was 35.5 per cent for income units aged 70 to 74. Across all ages, 44.0 per cent of income units were in rental stress after the payment.

The share of income units aged 65 and over in rental stress after Rent Assistance increased from 28.4 per cent in June 2013 to 32.7 per cent in March 2026, an increase of 4.3 percentage points⁴.

The Age Pension accounted for the largest number of income units receiving Rent Assistance of any primary payment type in March 2026, at 334,910⁴. Among these income units, 32.4 per cent were in rental stress after Rent Assistance.

Rent Assistance is generally paid at 75 cents for each dollar of rent above a threshold, up to a maximum rate that depends on the recipient’s family situation, according to the Department of Social Services (DSS)³. Rent Assistance paid with the Age Pension stops after 26 weeks outside Australia, or earlier if the recipient no longer pays rent in Australia⁷.

At June 2025, Rent Assistance covered between 32 and 41 per cent of the fortnightly rent of income units of all ages in the capital cities, depending on the state or territory, and between 37 and 41 per cent in the rest of each state or territory⁸.

Rent Assistance income units in rental stress without and after Rent Assistance, by age, Australia, March 2026 — Without Rent Assistance means comparing full rent with gross income. After Rent Assistance means comparing rent minus the payment with gross income. Age is the age of the person receiving the income unit’s primary payment. Only income units whose housing affordability can be assessed are included.

Section 06 · States and territories

Which states and territories have the most older renters receiving Rent Assistance?

New South Wales recorded the largest number of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over of any state or territory in March 2026, at 141,410. This was followed by Queensland at 106,625 and Victoria at 83,525, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)⁴. Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania recorded 34,025, 28,745 and 10,920, respectively.

In March 2026, New South Wales and Queensland recorded the highest shares of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over among the states and territories, at 30.5 and 30.4 per cent, respectively⁴. The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) recorded the lowest share at 18.6 per cent.

The ACT recorded the highest share of income units aged 65 and over in rental stress after Rent Assistance at 39.0 per cent⁴. This was based on 2,115 income units whose housing affordability could be assessed. Tasmania recorded the lowest share at 24.9 per cent.

In Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, the shares of older income units in rental stress after Rent Assistance were 34.1, 33.6 and 33.2 per cent, respectively, compared with 32.7 per cent nationally⁴.

Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over in rental stress, by state and territory, March 2026 — Shares are calculated from counts the AIHW rounds to the nearest 5. The Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory each have about 2,100 older income units, so their shares are based on small counts.

Ranked by the number of income units aged 65 and over. Rental stress means rent after Rent Assistance of more than 30% of gross income. The rental stress share is calculated from income units whose affordability can be assessed (407,175 nationally, compared with 409,570 in total). Counts are rounded to the nearest 5, and Australia includes other territories and unknown locations.
Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over by state and territory, March 2026
State or territory	Income units aged 65 and over	Share of all Rent Assistance income units in the state or territory (%)	In rental stress after Rent Assistance	Share in rental stress (%)
New South Wales	141,410	30.5	47,255	33.6
Queensland	106,625	30.4	36,130	34.1
Victoria	83,525	25.8	27,595	33.2
Western Australia	34,025	29.5	10,520	31.2
South Australia	28,745	28.5	7,435	26.0
Tasmania	10,920	27.7	2,700	24.9
Australian Capital Territory	2,125	18.6	825	39.0
Northern Territory	2,115	24.1	630	30.1
Australia	409,570	29.0	133,115	32.7

Source · AIHW Commonwealth Rent Assistance in Australia: quarterly data, Tables CRA.1 and CRA.2.

Section 07 · Social housing

At 30 June 2025, 142,099 social housing households had a main tenant aged 65 and over. This was equivalent to 34.5 per cent of the 411,633 households in public housing, community housing and state owned and managed Indigenous housing, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW)⁹. Households with a main tenant aged 75 and over numbered 62,446, or 15.2 per cent.

At 30 June 2025, about two in three social housing households had a main tenant aged 50 and over, equivalent to 66.2 per cent⁹.

Public housing recorded the highest share of households with a main tenant aged 65 and over among the three programs, at 37.0 per cent, or 105,460 of 285,256 households⁹. The share was 30.9 per cent in community housing and 15.9 per cent in state owned and managed Indigenous housing.

In 2024-25, 2,714 of the 16,016 newly allocated public housing households, or 16.9 per cent, had a main tenant aged 65 and over. This compared with 37.0 per cent of all public housing households at 30 June 2025⁹.

The number of households on the combined social housing waitlist increased from 183,000 at 30 June 2024 to 206,000 at 30 June 2025¹⁰. The AIHW does not publish the waitlist by the age of applicants.

Social housing households by age of main tenant, Australia, 30 June 2025 — Excludes Indigenous community housing, for which the AIHW did not have complete data, and 1,375 households whose main tenant’s age was not stated. The final group covers main tenants aged 75 and over, a wider age range than the five-year groups.

Indigenous community housing is not included because the AIHW did not have complete data for it. In Tasmanian state owned and managed Indigenous housing, main tenants aged 65 to 74 are counted in the 75 and over group.
Social housing households with an older main tenant by program, Australia, 30 June 2025
Social housing program	All households	Main tenant aged 65 and over	Main tenant aged 75 and over	Aged 65 and over, share (%)
Public housing	285,256	105,460	46,881	37.0
Community housing	110,326	34,094	14,813	30.9
State owned and managed Indigenous housing	16,051	2,545	752	15.9
All three programs	411,633	142,099	62,446	34.5

Source · AIHW Housing assistance in Australia 2026, Table HOUSEHOLDS.4.

Section 08

Frequently asked questions

What is housing stress for renters in Australia?

Under the 30/40 measure used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, a household is in housing stress when it contains people between the 3rd and 40th percentiles of equivalised disposable household income and spends more than 30 per cent of its gross income on housing costs. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare counts a Rent Assistance recipient as in rental stress when rent, after Rent Assistance is deducted, is more than 30 per cent of gross income.

How many older renters are in rental stress?

In March 2026, 133,115 income units aged 65 and over receiving Commonwealth Rent Assistance were in rental stress after the payment. This represented 32.7 per cent, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Without Rent Assistance, 279,760 income units, or 68.7 per cent, would have been in rental stress.

Is rental stress among older Rent Assistance recipients increasing?

The share of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over in rental stress after the payment increased from 28.4 per cent in June 2013 to 32.7 per cent in March 2026, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Over the same period, the number of those income units in rental stress increased from 65,980 to 133,115.

Which state has the most older renters on Rent Assistance?

New South Wales recorded the largest number of Rent Assistance income units aged 65 and over of any state or territory in March 2026, at 141,410, followed by Queensland at 106,625 and Victoria at 83,525. The Australian Capital Territory recorded the highest share of those income units in rental stress after Rent Assistance, at 39.0 per cent, based on about 2,100 income units.

Methodology

Rent Assistance figures use the AIHW quarterly data for March 2026 (Tables CRA.1 and CRA.2). Counts are rounded to the nearest 5. Figures for income units aged 65 and over combine the 65–69, 70–74 and 75-and-over age groups. Rental stress percentages are based on the 407,175 income units whose housing affordability could be assessed, rather than all 409,570 income units. The AIHW changed how it assigns the reference person in an income unit in 2017, making that year’s age figures incomparable with other years. Rental stress is measured by comparing rent with gross income. Rent Assistance is deducted from rent when calculating stress after the payment. Housing tenure, housing costs and the 30/40 housing stress measure use the ABS Survey of Income and Housing, 2019-20. The estimate of approximately 364,000 older renter households was calculated using published renting rates and household counts. Survey estimates have margins of error. Social housing figures use the AIHW Housing assistance in Australia 2026 tables and exclude Indigenous community housing. Age Pension figures use DSS data for June 2026. ABS figures count households, AIHW Rent Assistance figures count income units, and DSS Age Pension figures count individual recipients. These measures are not directly comparable. Percentage changes, shares and rankings were calculated from the published figures.

References

ABS Housing Occupancy and Costs, 2019-20, data cube 6: Age of household reference person · Australian Bureau of Statistics ↑ b c d
ABS media statement, Survey of Income and Housing results will not be released · Australian Bureau of Statistics ↑
DSS Benefit and Payment Recipient Demographics, June 2026 · data.gov.au ↑ b c
AIHW Commonwealth Rent Assistance in Australia: quarterly data, data tables June 2013 to March 2026 · aihw.gov.au ↑ b c d e f g h i j k l m
ABS Housing Occupancy and Costs, 2019-20, data cube 5: Housing costs as a proportion of income ranges · Australian Bureau of Statistics ↑ b c d
ABS Housing Occupancy and Costs, 2019-20, data cube 4: Housing costs as a proportion of income · Australian Bureau of Statistics ↑ b c
Department of Social Services, Social Security Guide 7.1.2, Payments with unlimited portability · guides.dss.gov.au ↑
AIHW Housing assistance in Australia 2026: Financial assistance · aihw.gov.au ↑
AIHW Housing assistance in Australia 2026: Data tables, social housing households · aihw.gov.au ↑ b c d
AIHW Housing assistance in Australia 2026 — Households and waitlists · aihw.gov.au ↑