The South Australian Council of Social Service says in many cases regional rents have climbed quicker than inflation, the aged pension and the JobSeeker allowance.

The council’s CEO Ross Womersley said while rents in regional SA are generally lower than in Adelaide, the affordability struggles are often just as acute.

“Rents for three-bedroom houses increased by above the inflation rate in five of the eight regions over the last year, and when we try to match people on JobSeeker payments, age pension or minimum wages with rental costs across different regions, we find the average rental prices would lead to housing stress about half the time – and that assumes people can even find a home to rent!” he said.

“There is no simple fix, but most obviously we need significant investment in public housing in the regions to increase supply of rental properties.

“And we need to review a range of housing concessions to assist those who are struggling most with rental affordability.”

The state government had budgeted to build 150 new public houses across regional SA, Womersley said, “but much more needs to be done”.

– AAP