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Turn weekly rent into gross and net rental yield, allowing for your costs, vacancy and stamp duty.
Gross yield
5.63%Weekly rent × 52 ÷ purchase priceNet yield
3.65%After listed costs, vacancy and estimated investor duty$650 weekly rent on a $600,000 property gives 5.63% gross yield and 3.65% net yield after the listed costs, vacancy and estimated NSW investor stamp duty.
Example figures.
Rates as of .
Rental yield compares income from letting a property with its purchase cost. Gross yield divides a full year of rent, weekly rent × 52, by the purchase price, before vacancy or expenses.
Net yield allows for weeks when no rent is collected, subtracts the letting fee and annual strata, council rates, insurance and maintenance, then divides by the purchase price plus the stamp duty estimated for the selected state or territory. This is an operating return before mortgage payments and income tax, not the cash left after every payment.
Use annual totals for the four fixed costs, and check whether strata already includes building insurance, so you do not count it twice.
Annual rent = weekly rent × 52. Gross yield = annual rent ÷ purchase price × 100.
Rent collected = weekly rent × (52 − vacancy weeks). Letting fee = rent collected × letting fee percentage ÷ 100. Fixed costs = strata + council rates + insurance + maintenance.
Stamp duty = the state's rate table applied to the price: general rates for an investment property, or owner-occupier rates where the state publishes them.
Annual net income = rent collected − letting fee − fixed costs. Net yield = annual net income ÷ (purchase price + stamp duty) × 100.
Take an investment property priced at $600,000 with weekly rent of $650, two vacancy weeks and an 8% letting fee. Annual strata is $2,400, council rates $1,800, insurance $1,200 and maintenance $1,800. New South Wales investor duty is $21,187 using the current general rate table, assuming a wholly residential purchase at market value.
NSW duty is A$11,602 plus 4.5% of A$213,000 above A$387,000: A$21,187. New South Wales has no separate owner-occupier rate, so choosing No gives the same duty here.
Fixed annual costs remain payable when rent is zero. Duty uses the current official rate tables for a residential purchase, not a historical contract, and assumes the purchase price equals the dutiable value; a higher market value, chattels or linked transactions can change the assessment.
There is no field for borrowing, land tax, water charges, advertising, legal fees, buying costs other than stamp duty, depreciation or capital improvements. This yield is not a total investment return and does not forecast capital growth or sale proceeds.
Duty is an estimate before any first home buyer or other concession, such as pensioner or off-the-plan relief, and excludes foreign purchaser surcharges. Choosing No assumes at least one buyer meets the state's occupancy rules.
Investors pay general rates in every state and territory. For a home you will live in, Victoria applies principal place of residence rates up to A$550,000 and Queensland applies home concession rates; for contracts from 1 August 2026, Queensland also requires an Australian citizen, permanent resident or specified foreign retiree. Western Australia has a concessional rate up to A$200,000, and the ACT applies eligible owner occupier rates under its 2026 duty determination. New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory have no separate owner-occupier rate.
Most states charge a base amount plus a rate for each started A$100 above a threshold. The Northern Territory uses its statutory quadratic formula up to A$525,000, then whole-value percentage bands. Victoria's own example: a A$400,000 home costs $16,370 at principal place of residence rates, against $19,070 at general rates.
ASIC's Moneysmart property guide covers purchase costs, ongoing expenses and the risk that rent will not cover borrowing.
Ask an accountant or tax adviser about company or trust ownership, joint ownership, foreign residency, mixed private and rental use, depreciation or substantial building work. Ask your conveyancer or the state revenue office whether you qualify for an owner-occupier rate or concession, whether a surcharge applies, or about mixed use, large NSW parcels or an earlier contract.
There is no single yield that suits every investor or property. Compare the same measure across properties, then consider vacancy, operating costs, borrowing and the risks you can afford. A high gross figure does not establish that a property will produce positive cash flow or a good total return.
A 4% gross yield means a year of rent equals 4% of the purchase price before expenses. For example, A$20,000 annual rent on a A$500,000 purchase gives 4%. Running costs and vacancy reduce income, and stamp duty increases the cost used for net yield. Whether the resulting return meets your needs depends on your circumstances.
There is no universal target. This tool defines net yield as rent after vacancy and the listed operating costs, divided by purchase price plus stamp duty. It excludes borrowing, income tax and unlisted costs. Check the definition before comparing another advertised net yield, because its cost assumptions may differ.
This is an affordability measure, not a rental-yield formula or a legal rent limit. The Australian Bureau of Statistics describes housing stress using lower-income households that spend more than 30% of gross income on housing costs. Income left over and household circumstances also matter; this calculator does not assess tenant affordability.
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