Housing & Property•Series ID: 30014•1973–2026
Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) - Historical Data
Derived from the ABS Consumer Price Index Rents expenditure class (Index 30014), measuring actual rent paid by tenants.
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Current Statistics & Historical Records
Latest Reading (2026 Q2)
3.6%
Prev (2026 Q1): 3.7%-0.2 pp
Highest Recorded (1975 Q3)
17.2%
Recorded in 1975 Q3
Lowest Recorded (2020 Q3)
-1.4%
COVID-19 pandemic shock & 0.10% cash rate floor
Long-Run Mean (1973–2026)
5.2%
54 annual observations · Quarterly
Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) - Historical Series (1973–2026)
% p.a.Drag to pan, scroll to zoom, or toggle between full annual history (1973–2026) and recent quarterly releases.
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Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (30014) Latest: 3.6 % p.a. (2026 Q2)
Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) by Decade (1973–2026)
Decade averages, peaks, and troughs across Australian economic cycles
1970s1973–1979
11.1%
High (1975):16.4%
Low (1973):7.7%
1980s1980–1989
9.3%
High (1982):11.9%
Low (1980):6.8%
1990s1990–1999
2.5%
High (1990):5.9%
Low (1993):0.5%
2000s2000–2009
3.8%
High (2008):7.8%
Low (2003):1.9%
2010s2010–2019
2.3%
High (2011):4.6%
Low (2019):0.4%
2020s2020–2026
3.3%
High (2024):7.1%
Low (2020):-0.9%
Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) - Historical Table (1973–2026)
Unit: % p.a. · Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (30014)
| Year | CPI Rents (% p.a.) | Year Range (Low – High) | Historical Context / Year Snapshot |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3.7% | 3.6% – 3.7% | The Australian Economy in 2026 → |
| 2025 | 4.5% | 3.9% – 5.5% | Disinflation & monetary policy recalibration |
| 2024 | 7.1% | 6.5% – 7.8% | The Australian Economy in 2024 → |
| 2023 | 6.6% | 4.9% – 7.6% | The Australian Economy in 2023 → |
| 2022 | 2.3% | 1.1% – 4.0% | Post-pandemic inflation surge & rapid RBA tightening cycle |
| 2021 | -0.2% | -1.4% – 0.4% | The Australian Economy in 2021 → |
| 2020 | -0.9% | -1.4% – 0.2% | COVID-19 pandemic shock & 0.10% cash rate floor |
| 2019 | 0.4% | 0.2% – 0.5% | The Australian Economy in 2019 → |
| 2018 | 0.7% | 0.5% – 0.8% | The Australian Economy in 2018 → |
| 2017 | 0.6% | 0.5% – 0.7% | The Australian Economy in 2017 → |
| 2016 | 0.8% | 0.6% – 0.9% | The Australian Economy in 2016 → |
| 2015 | 1.6% | 1.1% – 2.1% | The Australian Economy in 2015 → |
| 2014 | 2.5% | 2.4% – 2.9% | The Australian Economy in 2014 → |
| 2013 | 3.3% | 3.0% – 3.5% | The Australian Economy in 2013 → |
| 2012 | 4.1% | 3.7% – 4.5% | The Australian Economy in 2012 → |
| 2011 | 4.6% | 4.5% – 4.7% | China mining investment & Terms of Trade supercycle peak |
| 2010 | 4.3% | 4.1% – 4.7% | The Australian Economy in 2010 → |
| 2009 | 6.7% | 5.2% – 8.1% | The Australian Economy in 2009 → |
| 2008 | 7.8% | 7.0% – 8.4% | Global Financial Crisis (GFC) & emergency rate cuts |
| 2007 | 5.5% | 4.4% – 6.7% | The Australian Economy in 2007 → |
| 2006 | 3.2% | 2.8% – 3.7% | The Australian Economy in 2006 → |
| 2005 | 2.2% | 2.1% – 2.4% | The Australian Economy in 2005 → |
| 2004 | 2.5% | 2.3% – 2.6% | The Australian Economy in 2004 → |
| 2003 | 1.9% | 1.6% – 2.2% | The Australian Economy in 2003 → |
| 2002 | 2.5% | 2.1% – 2.8% | The Australian Economy in 2002 → |
| 2001 | 3.1% | 3.0% – 3.2% | The Australian Economy in 2001 → |
| 2000 | 3.0% | 2.6% – 3.4% | Introduction of the 10% Goods and Services Tax (GST) |
| 1999 | 2.7% | 2.3% – 3.0% | The Australian Economy in 1999 → |
| 1998 | 3.0% | 2.9% – 3.2% | The Australian Economy in 1998 → |
| 1997 | 2.9% | 2.8% – 3.0% | The Australian Economy in 1997 → |
| 1996 | 3.1% | 2.9% – 3.2% | The Australian Economy in 1996 → |
| 1995 | 1.7% | 0.9% – 2.4% | The Australian Economy in 1995 → |
| 1994 | 0.7% | 0.6% – 0.8% | The Australian Economy in 1994 → |
| 1993 | 0.5% | 0.4% – 0.8% | RBA formalises 2–3% inflation targeting |
| 1992 | 0.9% | 0.6% – 1.5% | The Australian Economy in 1992 → |
| 1991 | 3.3% | 1.9% – 4.4% | Early 1990s recession ("The recession we had to have") |
| 1990 | 5.9% | 5.0% – 7.0% | Monetary tightening peak (17.5% Cash Rate) |
| 1989 | 9.5% | 8.3% – 10.6% | The Australian Economy in 1989 → |
| 1988 | 11.4% | 11.2% – 11.6% | The Australian Economy in 1988 → |
| 1987 | 10.3% | 9.9% – 10.8% | October 1987 sharemarket crash |
| 1986 | 10.3% | 9.5% – 10.9% | The Australian Economy in 1986 → |
| 1985 | 8.5% | 7.7% – 9.4% | The Australian Economy in 1985 → |
| 1984 | 7.3% | 7.0% – 7.7% | The Australian Economy in 1984 → |
| 1983 | 8.9% | 6.7% – 11.4% | Float of the Australian Dollar & Prices and Incomes Accord |
| 1982 | 11.9% | 10.4% – 13.0% | Early 1980s recession & drought |
| 1981 | 8.0% | 7.4% – 9.2% | The Australian Economy in 1981 → |
| 1980 | 6.8% | 6.6% – 7.0% | The Australian Economy in 1980 → |
| 1979 | 8.5% | 7.9% – 8.8% | The Australian Economy in 1979 → |
| 1978 | 8.1% | 7.7% – 8.5% | The Australian Economy in 1978 → |
| 1977 | 11.0% | 9.4% – 13.1% | The Australian Economy in 1977 → |
| 1976 | 14.9% | 13.5% – 16.0% | The Australian Economy in 1976 → |
| 1975 | 16.4% | 15.7% – 17.2% | The Australian Economy in 1975 → |
| 1974 | 11.1% | 8.0% – 13.1% | 1974 wage explosion & stagflation peak |
| 1973 | 7.7% | 6.2% – 9.2% | First OPEC oil shock |
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Compare CPI Rents against another indicator →
Source Information & Methodology
- Primary Institution:
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)
- Dataset / Publication:
- Consumer Price Index - Rents
- Series / Table ID:
- ABS Dataflow CPI_Q (30014)
- Release Frequency:
- Quarterly
• Primary source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) - Consumer Price Index - Rents (ABS Dataflow CPI_Q).
• Observation frequency: Quarterly. Annual table values represent calendar year averages.
• Series coverage spans 1973 to 2026 (54 annual observations).
APA Citation:Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2026). Consumer Price Index - Rents (Dataflow CPI_Q: 30014). Retrieved October 2026 from https://data.api.abs.gov.au
Frequently Asked Questions: Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents)
- What is the current Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents)?
- As of 2026 Q2, the latest recorded Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) is 3.6 (% p.a.), compared with 3.7 in 2026 Q1.
- What is the highest and lowest Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) ever recorded in Australia?
- Across the historical series (1973–2026), the highest observation was 17.2 (% p.a.) in 1975 Q3, while the lowest was -1.4 (% p.a.) in 2020 Q3. The long-run historical average is 5.2.
- Where is the official Rental Price Inflation (CPI Rents) data sourced from?
- This series is compiled from Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (Consumer Price Index - Rents, Series ID: 30014) and is updated on a quarterly basis under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).