Renting
Rental affordability calculator
Check your personal share of rent against take-home income, weekly breathing room and the cash needed to move in.
Affordability status ?
0% Enter income Your personal weekly rent share is compared with your take-home income.Weekly budget after rent ?
$0/wkleft for food, transport, bills and savings
- Take-home income (weekly) ?
- $0/wk
- Your rent share ?
- -$0/wk
- Remaining ?
- $0/wk
Take-home income needed for this rent at the 30% benchmark ?$0/wk
Up-front move-in costs (NSW) ?
- Bond (up to 4 weeks' rent) ?
- $0
- Rent in advance (up to 2 weeks) ?
- $0
- Other moving costs ?
- $0
- Estimated cash to move in ?
- $0
Bond is held by NSW Fair Trading and may be returned at the end of the tenancy, less any agreed or ordered claims.
Important: This calculator is a general NSW budgeting guide only, not financial, legal, tenancy or eligibility advice. It does not assess whether you will be approved for a property, loan, government payment or Rent Assistance. The 30%, 40% and 55% figures are reference points only; agents, landlords and providers may apply different criteria. The move-in amount is an estimate based on up to four weeks' bond and up to two weeks' rent in advance, and does not cover every possible cost. Check the property listing, tenancy agreement and current NSW Fair Trading information, and confirm any assistance directly with Services Australia before relying on a result.
Calculator field guide
Pay cycle
Select the frequency of the take-home income amount you enter. The calculator converts it to a weekly figure for comparison with rent.
Take-home income
Income available after tax and deductions for the selected pay cycle. Include only income you can reliably use for rent and living costs.
Weekly rent for the property
The total rent advertised for the property each week, before separately billed utilities or other housing costs.
People splitting rent
The number of people sharing the rent equally. Your personal rent share is calculated by dividing the total weekly rent by this number.
Other move-in costs
Optional one-off costs you expect to pay when moving, such as removalists, utility connections, storage or new household items.
Affordability status
Your personal weekly rent share divided by your weekly take-home income, expressed as a percentage.
30% benchmark
Thirty percent of your weekly take-home income. It is a commonly used housing-cost reference point, not an eligibility assessment.
40% target
Forty percent of your weekly take-home income. This is a general renter budgeting target, not a rule or affordability assessment.
55% upper guide
Fifty-five percent of your weekly take-home income. This is a general upper budgeting guide; application criteria can vary between property managers and landlords.
Weekly budget after rent
Your weekly take-home income less your personal share of rent, before food, utilities, transport, savings and other costs.
Take-home income needed for this rent at the 30% benchmark
The weekly take-home income needed for your personal share of rent to equal 30% of income. This is a general housing-cost benchmark, not an eligibility assessment.
Up-front move-in costs (NSW)
An estimate of up to four weeks' bond plus up to two weeks' rent in advance, plus the other moving costs you enter. Your actual costs may differ.
Take-home income (weekly)
Your entered take-home income converted to a weekly amount using the selected pay cycle.
Your rent share
Your equal share of the property's weekly rent, calculated by dividing total rent by the number of people splitting it.
Remaining
Your weekly take-home income less your personal share of rent, before other living costs.
Bond (up to 4 weeks' rent)
Four times the total weekly property rent. NSW landlords or agents cannot require a bond exceeding four weeks' rent.
Rent in advance (up to 2 weeks)
Two times the total weekly property rent. NSW landlords or agents cannot require more than two weeks' rent in advance.
Other moving costs
The optional one-off moving cost amount you entered.
Estimated cash to move in
The estimated bond, rent in advance and other moving costs added together. Your actual costs may differ.