Help paying the rent
The aim of community housing is for it to be affordable. Learn about rent rebates and other help that may be available to help you pay your rent.
The aim of community housing is for it to be affordable. This means that it is available at a cost that you are able to pay.
How rent rebates work
Community housing providers charge the market rate for rent. This means they charge the same amount someone would pay to rent a similar home privately.
If you cannot afford to pay market rate
If you cannot afford this amount for rent (based on an assessment of your household's income), you can apply for a rent rebate.
If you qualify for a rent rebate
If you qualify, the rebate amount is subtracted from the market rate of the rent.
You pay what's left
The amount left becomes the amount you pay to your community housing provider. With a rent rebate, you will not spend more than 25% of your assessed income on rent.
If you are eligible for Rent Assistance from Centrelink
If you receive certain types of payments from Centrelink, they may determine you are eligible for Rent Assistance. If they do, this will affect the amount of rent rebate you receive. Your rebate will be adjusted to take your Rent Assistance income into account.
It is your responsibility to pay your rent on time and in full.
Learn more about your rights and responsibilities as a social housing tenant.
If you cannot pay your rent
If you lose your job or are experiencing another type of hardship and cannot pay your rent, the first thing to do is to reach out to your community housing provider. They can help you set up a payment plan.
There may be other help available to you - see Experiencing hardship during a tenancy for more information.