24 April 2023
NTCOSS has released its latest Cost of Living report, which reveals the extent of rises in utilities, housing and transport costs in the NT over the last year. In some cases, the cost rises are higher than the rate of inflation – which reached a 32-year high last year – and are making essential services unaffordable.
Low income and remote area households are the hardest hit by rising transport, utilities and housing costs, which means people have less money for other essentials like food, clothes and medical costs. NTCOSS recommends that the NT and Commonwealth governments implement measures to help people, such as investing in more social and affordable housing supply, better targeted Concessions and increasing the rate of JobSeeker to at least $76 a day.
Of particular concern is the rising number of involuntary ‘self-disconnections’ from pre-payment meters per household in the NT, when electricity is disconnected because customers are unable to top up their prepayment meter.
Incidents of involuntary ‘self-disconnection’ were up 6.4% between 2020/21 and 2021/22, and up 21.4% for the last two years to 41.4 disconnections per household. That represents nearly one disconnection a week for households with prepayment meters.
Fuel costs in the major centres of the NT over the past year have risen at a rate well above the rise in the general inflation rate (CPI All Groups) of 7.1% for Darwin. Fuel prices are up 15.5% in Darwin and 17.9% in Alice Springs in the last year, but the rises were more than double that for diesel prices and were far higher in remote areas such as the Tiwi Islands and East Arnhem. The proportion of weekly household income spent on transport costs was 16.1% in Darwin and 16.8% in Alice Springs, the latter being the second least affordable regional centre in the country in terms of income required to cover transport costs.
The ability of Territorians to put a roof over their heads has become more difficult with rent prices extremely high. Over the past year rent prices for 3 bedroom houses and 1 bedroom units have risen, with many rent prices well above the general inflation rate for Darwin. As at December 2022, the NT had the equal second highest average rent price for a 3 bedroom house, and was the third least affordable jurisdiction for renting 3 bedroom houses in terms of proportion of average household income required (25.6% vs national average of 22.9%).
The average weekly income required for mortgage payments has risen above 30% to 32.2%. If a homeowner puts more than 30% of pre-tax income into their mortgage payments, they are considered to be in mortgage stress.
Click here for the Cost of Living Transport Factsheet
Click here for the Cost of Living Housing Factsheet
Click here for the Cost of Living Utilities Factsheet