Viral outrage over $275 Brisbane "studio" in grand house for rent
A listing for a Brisbane "studio" apartment in a grand house has gone viral for all the wrong reasons.
TikTok user Rachel McQueen, who goes by the handle @rachmcqueen1, has been left outraged over the rental in Hamilton.
The apartment at 5/394 Kingsford Smith Drive, which is available to lease for $275-per-week, is described in the listing as a "studio in a small block of five" that's "exactly what you've been looking for".
In the TikTok clip, which has so far attracted more than 253,000 views and 17,000 likes, an outraged Rachel says people should be entitled to "safe, livable and secure housing", regardless of their budget.
5/394 Kingsford Smith Drive, Hamilton, Queensland
See photos of the listing here
READ MORE: Melbourne has now surpassed Sydney as the toughest rental market
Sharing a photo of the building from Google Maps, Rachel tells her followers she believes it is not a unit in a block of five, but rather a basement. However, there are no floorplan photos that provide evidence of this, and Nine could not verify the position of the studio within the property.
There is a rental record on Domain for 5/394 Kingsford Smith Drive, showing it was leased in October 2021 and August 2018 for undisclosed prices. Rental records are also available publicly for units one through to four.
Property Listings
Rachel questions how "temperature-resistant" the address would be with its concrete floors and a ceiling which has been painted black.
Agents for the property describe it as a "large studio bedroom" with a kitchen, separate bathroom with shower and shared laundry. The kitchen is basic with exposed pipes and wooden framework visible above the stove.
READ MORE: This $25,000 a month country house is Australia's most expensive rural rental
"The character home is right on the river with a short walk to the Sunday markets and river walk routes," agents say in the listing.
The median asking rent for a unit in Hamilton is $480-per-week, according to Domain figures. The suburb has a population of 6,984 and an average age demographic of 20 to 39 years.
It continues to be a landlord's market across all capital cities, new data shows.
Domain's Rental Vacancy Rate Report for February 2023 reveals that the national vacancy rate remains firm at 0.8 per cent. The vacancy rate is a measure of the number of rentals that are unoccupied by tenants at a given point in time in the market.
The national vacancy rate remains at its lowest point on record in February at 0.8 per cent. The figure was 0.8 per cent in January 2023 and 1.1 per cent in February 2022.
The Queensland capital attained a record low of 0.6 per cent in February this year, down from 0.8 per cent in January. However, there is a glimmer of hope with experts suggesting the recent stability may indicate a future loosening of the tight conditions.
Four other studios available to rent in Brisbane, Queensland
10/42 Brook Street, South Brisbane
See photos of the listing here
39/31 Ramsgate Street, Kelvin Grove
See photos of the listing here
16/16 Patrick Lane, Toowong
See photos of the listing here
6/56 Brentnall Street, Norman Park
See photos of the listing here
