Nearly 60 per cent of Australian tenants were struggling with rental stress, a survey by financial comparison site Savvy has found.
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Nearly three in five Australian tenants are spending over 31 per cent of their weekly income on rent.
Incredibly, 9.2 per cent of people are forced to allocate over 61 per cent of their income on rent, while 20 per cent of people pay between 46 to 60 per cent, and 30 per cent spend between 31 and 45 per cent.
Women were more likely to be affected by sky-high rents than men with female tenants disproportionately represented in the higher percentiles.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare defines households or individuals as under rental stress if more than 30 per cent of their income was spent on rent.
Rising rents are another blow to Australians battling soaring cost of living amid calls for the government to help people on low income by increasing Jobseeker.
Savvy spokesperson Adrian Edlington said the number of people paying extreme rent levels was concerning and could have major effects on people's mental health and wellbeing.
"With utilities set to rise later this year, it could lead to an even greater cost of living crisis for renters in Australia, setting back plans for home ownership or other major asset purchases," he said.
"Also, the fact women are paying more than men is worrying. However, both men and women can agree that their rents are overpriced, and they may get worse as time goes on."
More and more people are being forced into homelessness and living in cars or tents because rents are too expensive and there is insufficient social housing available.
- ACOSS CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie
Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie said in a statement to ACM the results were concerning but unsurprising given Australian housing was unaffordable for people on lower incomes.
She said an ACOSS survey found 93 per cent of people relying on income support were in rental stress due to high cost of living.
"More and more people are being forced into homelessness and living in cars or tents because rents are too expensive and there is insufficient social housing available," she said.
"This is in addition to already being forced to make appalling choices between food and medicine in one of the world's wealthiest nations."
Dr Goldie said it was vital the government tackled the growing crisis by raising Jobseeker and rent assistance and providing more affordable housing options.
It comes as Greens leader Adam Bandt called for a nationwide rent freeze on April 26 and put pressure on the prime minister to raise the issue at the next national cabinet meeting.
Greens housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather said in a statement to ACM that without a rent freeze hundreds of thousands of families risked being pushed onto the streets.
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"Every day Labor refuses to coordinate a national freeze on rent increases via national cabinet is another day a family will face eviction because they can't afford the rent," he said.
"The Prime Minister might call rent controls "pixie dust", but for renters, a freeze on rent increases means staying in their home and not being evicted into homelessness.
"With multiple investment properties maybe it's hard for the Prime Minister to understand just how urgent this rental crisis is, but I encourage him to go to talk to renters and ask them what they think of freezing rent increases," he said.
