House prices get a lot of airtime – but not rental prices. Experts say that is set to change with low-income families across the country feeling the pinch of rent increases. A lot of that’s down to the removal of COVID payments made by the government, and rental property prices are set to soar further as the national border reopens and immigrants and foreign students return, analysts say. Yesterday, peak housing body National Shelter released its latest Rental Affordability Index that measures housing costs relative to household incomes. The least affordable city in Oz (and the only one to be classed as ‘unaffordable’) is Hobart, with the average household spending a 3rd of its income on rent if paying the median rate. The most affordable cities might surprise you – Sydney (24%) and Melbourne (20%). At least power bills are coming down…