Last updated: 28 July 2026
Editorial responsibility: Moving To Australia.
Quick Answer
The four typical first-month scenario totals below run from $3,444 for one adult in shared accommodation to $15,444 for two adults and two children in a three-bedroom rental. The scenarios are not market averages, quotes or recommended budgets. Use the profile closest to the household, inspect every included assumption, then replace it with current evidence.
The ongoing figures cover only modelled rent, groceries, transport, phone and internet, and a utilities allowance where included. They are not complete household budgets.
Scenario Summary
| Household and accommodation | First month | Modelled ongoing month |
|---|---|---|
| Single adult, shared accommodation | $3,444 | $1,677 |
| Couple, one-bedroom rental | $8,076 | $3,263 |
| 2 adults and 1 child, two-bedroom rental | $11,700 | $4,117 |
| 2 adults and 2 children, three-bedroom rental | $15,444 | $4,970 |
All figures are Australian dollars. They use planning inputs reviewed on 13 July 2026 and add a 20% buffer to the first-month subtotal. Actual costs vary by property, suburb, timing, household, provider, availability and lifestyle.
What Each Figure Assumes
Single adult in shared accommodation
The $3,444 first-month total is:
- $920 bond;
- $460 rent in advance;
- $460 first-rent-payment allowance;
- $500 groceries;
- $120 transport;
- $60 phone and internet;
- $350 furniture and household basics; and
- $574 buffer, equal to 20% of the $2,870 subtotal.
The $1,677 ongoing figure is approximately $997 monthly rent, derived from a $230 weekly rent assumption, plus $500 groceries, $120 transport and $60 phone and internet.
Couple in a one-bedroom rental
The $8,076 first-month total is:
- $1,600 bond;
- $800 rent in advance;
- $800 first-rent-payment allowance;
- $900 groceries;
- $180 transport;
- $150 phone and internet;
- $300 utilities allowance;
- $2,000 furniture and household basics; and
- $1,346 buffer, equal to 20% of the $6,730 subtotal.
The $3,263 ongoing figure is approximately $1,733 monthly rent, derived from a $400 weekly rent assumption, plus $900 groceries, $180 transport, $150 phone and internet and a $300 utilities allowance.
Two adults and one child in a two-bedroom rental
The $11,700 first-month total is:
- $2,000 bond;
- $1,000 rent in advance;
- $1,000 first-rent-payment allowance;
- $1,200 groceries;
- $180 transport;
- $170 phone and internet;
- $400 utilities allowance;
- $3,000 furniture and household basics;
- $800 child and school basics; and
- $1,950 buffer, equal to 20% of the $9,750 subtotal.
The $4,117 ongoing figure is approximately $2,167 monthly rent, derived from a $500 weekly rent assumption, plus $1,200 groceries, $180 transport, $170 phone and internet and a $400 utilities allowance.
Two adults and two children in a three-bedroom rental
The $15,444 first-month total is:
- $2,400 bond;
- $1,200 rent in advance;
- $1,200 first-rent-payment allowance;
- $1,500 groceries;
- $180 transport;
- $190 phone and internet;
- $500 utilities allowance;
- $4,500 furniture and household basics;
- $1,200 child and school basics; and
- $2,574 buffer, equal to 20% of the $12,870 subtotal.
The $4,970 ongoing figure is $2,600 monthly rent, derived from a $600 weekly rent assumption, plus $1,500 groceries, $180 transport, $190 phone and internet and a $500 utilities allowance.
Important Calculation Limits
The bond-derived rent calculation uses four weeks of rent for bond, then converts the weekly result to an average month using 52 weeks divided by 12. It is a modelling assumption, not a statement of current Hobart rent or the amount a particular lease will require.
The first-month model separates rent in advance from a first-rent-payment allowance. Those amounts may overlap in timing under some leases, so replace both with the payment schedule for the actual agreement.
The model uses the same utilities allowance in the first-month and ongoing calculations for the couple and family profiles. Treat it as an editable planning allowance—not evidence that setup charges repeat every month. The single shared-accommodation profile contains no separate utilities amount, which may not match the arrangement being considered.
The transport allowance can cover a mixture of travel needs; it is not a current public-transport fare quote. Replace it after testing the actual work, school, care, airport and weekend journeys.
Evidence behind the shared-accommodation and one-bedroom planning inputs is weaker than the two- and three-bedroom profiles. Give current housing evidence more weight than these dated inputs.
Costs Not Included
The displayed totals do not include:
- temporary accommodation;
- flights, visas or migration advice;
- health cover or out-of-pocket healthcare;
- car purchase, registration, insurance and repairs;
- fuel or parking beyond any amount intentionally covered by the general transport allowance;
- childcare fees or school fees;
- delayed income;
- storage, removals or pet costs; or
- discretionary and household-specific spending not listed above.
Add these separately where they apply. A 20% first-month buffer does not automatically cover a long temporary stay or delayed income.
Why The Hobart Scenario Differs
The displayed rent and transport amounts come from Moving To Australia's editorial planning profiles reviewed on 13 July 2026. They are fixed scenario inputs, not current Hobart market averages or Metro fare quotes. The shared and one-bedroom housing inputs have weaker supporting evidence and need especially careful replacement with current property evidence.
Hobart's lower displayed totals are driven largely by the lower rent inputs used in these profiles, not by a claim that every household will find low-cost housing. The $120 or $180 transport allowance may also fail if the home, workplace, school, care or service route requires a car. Heating, property condition and mainland travel sit outside or beyond the simple city inputs. Housing availability, vehicle need and property energy requirements are therefore the Hobart assumptions most likely to change the comparison.
Make The Hobart Budget Specific
- Use the housing test in the Hobart moving guide to replace the rent and bond assumptions with a current property or realistic shortlist.
- Use the guide's transport test to price the actual work, school, care and weekend journeys, including any vehicle requirement.
- Use its work-location test to estimate when income may begin without treating an application as a job.
- Add every excluded cost that applies to the household.
- Run a lower, typical and higher case, keeping the source and date beside each input.
The First Month Cost Estimator lets you replace the planning inputs. The Australia cost-of-living guide explains the wider budgeting method, and First-Month Costs by Australian Destination compares the same profiles across destinations.
Hobart Decision
Return to Moving to Hobart when the housing evidence, recurring journeys, excluded costs, income timing and buffer all describe the same household. If one of those remains unknown, keep the scenario as a planning range rather than a commitment.