Rental income, losses and capital gains by postcode, 2023-24
In 2023-24, 2,260,641 people living in Australia declared rent, and 55% of them made a loss on it.
Worked out from ATO, Taxation Statistics 2023-24, under CC BY 2.5 AU. How we work these out.
Where Australia's loss-making landlords live, postcode by postcode.
What did people claim for rental properties across Australia?
In 2023-24, people lodged 3,403,238 rental property schedules for properties across Australia, and claimed $64.1 billion of costs on them. Interest on loans was the largest, 50% of it.
| Cost | Schedules claiming it | Share of all costs claimed |
|---|---|---|
| Interest on loans | Schedules claiming it 2,402,185 | Share of all costs claimed 50% |
| Capital works | Schedules claiming it 1,672,017 | Share of all costs claimed 7% |
| Council rates | Schedules claiming it 3,140,808 | Share of all costs claimed 7% |
| Property agent fees | Schedules claiming it 2,556,672 | Share of all costs claimed 6% |
| Body corporate fees | Schedules claiming it 1,185,426 | Share of all costs claimed 6% |
| Repairs and maintenance | Schedules claiming it 2,587,102 | Share of all costs claimed 5% |
| Land tax | Schedules claiming it 1,025,386 | Share of all costs claimed 4% |
| Insurance | Schedules claiming it 2,603,683 | Share of all costs claimed 4% |
| The other 11 kinds | Schedules claiming it | Share of all costs claimed 11% |
Each person lodges a schedule for each rental property they have an interest in, so a home owned by two people has two. These count schedules, not properties or people. The ATO counted 2024 schedules processed by 31 October 2025, so these may not be complete.
From ATO, Taxation Statistics 2023-24, Individuals Tables 26 and 27, read 13 Nov 2026, under CC BY 2.5 AU. How we read these.
How many rental properties do people have an interest in?
In 2023-24, 2,335,540 people lodged a rental property schedule, 68,479 of them living overseas. 72% had an interest in one property, 19% in two and 10% in three or more.
| Rental property interests | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 interest | People 1,672,616 | Share 72% |
| 2 interests | People 438,906 | Share 19% |
| 3 interests | People 135,327 | Share 6% |
| 4 interests | People 48,690 | Share 2% |
| 5 interests | People 19,849 | Share 1% |
| 6 interests | People 9,127 | Share Under 1% |
| 7 interests | People 4,494 | Share Under 1% |
| 8 interests | People 2,524 | Share Under 1% |
| 9 interests | People 1,348 | Share Under 1% |
| 10 or more interests | People 2,659 | Share Under 1% |
The same property can have more than one person with an interest in a year, as joint owners, or a seller and a buyer, and one person can have an interest in more than one. These come from the rental property schedules people lodged, not their tax returns, so they count slightly different people from the figures above.
From ATO, Taxation Statistics 2023-24, Individuals Tables 26 and 27, read 13 Nov 2026, under CC BY 2.5 AU. How we read these.
How many people living in Australia declared a capital gain?
In 2023-24, 1,311,503 people living in Australia declared a net capital gain, 8% of its 16,419,659 taxpayers. Their average net capital gain was $30,000.
These are gains of every kind, such as on shares, a business or property, not gains on property alone.
Worked out from ATO, Taxation Statistics 2023-24, under CC BY 2.5 AU. How we work these out.
What does each state show?
| State | People who declared rent | Share who made a loss |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | People who declared rent 824,411 | Share who made a loss 54% |
| Victoria | People who declared rent 598,608 | Share who made a loss 62% |
| Queensland | People who declared rent 383,583 | Share who made a loss 52% |
| South Australia | People who declared rent 135,266 | Share who made a loss 51% |
| Western Australia | People who declared rent 212,178 | Share who made a loss 52% |
| Tasmania | People who declared rent 36,120 | Share who made a loss 43% |
| Australian Capital Territory | People who declared rent 50,991 | Share who made a loss 64% |
| Northern Territory | People who declared rent 19,484 | Share who made a loss 58% |