More than 5200 households in Bendigo were forking out in excess of 30 per cent of their total income on rent in 2016, which the Productivity Commission has defined as "rental stress".

Meanwhile, almost a quarter of households had a weekly income of less than $650 meaning they could afford no more than $195 in rent per week, leaving them competing for the 20 per cent of properties in Bendigo that have less than three bedrooms.

The cheapest home with three or more bedrooms currently advertised on one major real estate website for rent in Bendigo is priced at $210 per week, out of reach of the 14,000 households earning less than $650 per week.

The median rent in Bendigo is $250 per week, 42 per cent of the individual median weekly income of $593, while Newstart recipients received $268 per week plus rent assistance.

After searching for an affordable rental property for five months, Bendigo mother Tara McGrath managed to secure a rental property in February this year.

Ms McGrath estimates the family spends about 30 per cent of their total household income on rent, and puts their success in finding a place down to a single factor.

“Basically luck,” she said.

“There was nothing more than that to it, we applied for everything and eventually we were the first people to look at the house and the landlord went ‘We like you, no worries’.”

There were 7987 unoccupied private dwellings in Bendigo last year, 12.2 per cent of the total housing stock and a full percentage point higher than the national average.

But homeowners were not immune from housing stress either, with 6.1 per cent of Bendigo’s mortgage holders making repayments in excess of 30 per cent of their weekly income.

Their median monthly mortgage repayment was $1382.

Haven; Home, Safe chief executive officer Ken Marchingo said the census data was consistent with the housing organisation’s own figures, which showed there were only a handful of affordable houses available for the majority of Bendigo residents.

“If you’re a single person on the median income that means finding somewhere to rent for no more than $180 a week,” he said.

“Our recent numbers tell us that there are currently only seven properties available to rent at this price across all of Greater Bendigo.”

Mr Marchingo said the city’s median weekly rent of $250 meant those who did not own their own homes were left with few options.

“For this price you currently have a choice of 58 two bedroom properties and 17 three bedroom properties,” he said.

“That’s not a lot of options for those 28,000 people living in private rental properties.”

But Mr Marchingo said housing affordability and financial stress were just two of the top five drivers of homelessness in Bendigo.

“The others being  domestic and family violence victims having to flee, those with no housing at all, and a great many living in inadequate or inappropriate housing,” he said.

“More concerning is the overall national decline in home ownership and rising level of indebtedness in the older 55 to 64 age bracket as they head towards retirement.”