Our original mortgage on our home is just under $900 f/n. This house would rent for about $430+ a week here. It is a little poky 3 bedder. So it would be not quite covering itself.

We are also buiilding an investment property, the mortgage will be about $1100 f/n under current interest rates, the rental income will be around $490 a week - so it will not cover its own mortgage repayments. Again this is a small 3 bedder.

The thing about canberra is that property prices are very high as are the rents. You might save a little by renting, but not much. The problem is that a lot of people don't have much choice because they cann't afford the large mortgages but they still have to pay nearly as much on rent anyway.