Michael O'Keefe was sweating when he received a phone call from his real estate agent informing him his rent would increase by $85 per week.
The retired truck driver uses a fan to push hot air around to survive Dubbo's brutal summer heat because of the prohibitive cost of air conditioning.
Dubbo landlords are making the biggest profit margins in NSW, with the cost of rent rising a further eight per cent in the past year, according to CoreLogic data.
The latest research found the Far West/Orana region, which covers Dubbo, had the highest gross rental yield in the state at 5.9 per cent.
The report also noted a broader trend of rising rental yields across NSW as landlords hike rents faster than house prices can rise.
Mr O'Keefe said he used to pay $225 per week, but was told it would go up to $310 just before Christmas.
"This new owner, who is from Sydney I think, didn't even look at the place. The real estate did it over the phone," he said.
"We had to stay here because there was nowhere else around Dubbo we could find."
Vinnies volunteer Ian Wray said he was dealing with growing numbers of desperate people in need of basic supplies because of rental stress.
"They're coming in to see us looking for food support to get them through the next three or four days till they get to their next pay check," Mr Wray said.
"It's a very sad situation we've got to. Wages are not going up quick enough, and social security payments are certainly not enough for these people to survive on."
Peter Hargrave, a volunteer who specialises in helping NSW farmers, said the cost of living pressures were felt especially hard out in the bush.
Mr Hargrave said farmers in the region had suffered drought, flood, mouse plagues and rent rises all in quick succession.
He said many farmers didn't even have basic home appliances because they were too expensive to replace after mice chewed through wiring.
"People were waking up in the middle of the night with mice crawling all over them," Mr Hargrave said.
Failure to address housing issues
Real Estate NSW Orana representative Laura Shooter said both major political parties were missing the mark on addressing the region's housing crisis.
NSW Labor has vowed to increase stamp duty exemptions as a key election promise, but Ms Shooter said this failed to address the underlying housing shortages.
"What I'd really like to see is one of the major parties really take supply by the jugular," Ms Shooter said.
"It is supply that's going to have an impact on affordability in our region."
