With the end of the mining boom in Western Australia, house prices and rentals have been falling — but the poorest people in the state are yet to see any benefit.

The signs of economic slowdown are everywhere.

Unemployment in Western Australia hit 6.9 per cent in November, the highest level since 2002. It has since fallen to 6.6 per cent.

Last quarter, personal insolvency rates jumped by 26 per cent, compared to just 1 per cent nationally.

Home prices have decreased by 3.2 per cent in Perth over the past 12 months, and high vacancy rates have forced residential and commercial rents down.

In theory, low income earners who struggled with high housing prices during the boom should be better off now — but, in reality, they are not.

Professor Rachel Ong studies the Western Australian economy at the Curtin University's Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre and her research to date has found that those who did not benefit during the boom are not winning from the downturn either.

"If you look at an economic slowdown, you would expect the gap between the rich and poor to narrow," Dr Ong said.

"However, what we did find is that there is still a huge amount of income inequality and wealth inequality in the state.

"The wealthiest 20 per cent of WA households hold almost two-thirds of the state's total wealth.

"In contrast, the poorest 20 per cent of households hold less than 1 per cent of the state's total wealth."

Coffee is cheaper — that's it

When ABC Radio Perth asked listeners how the downturn was affecting them, most could see few positives.

Nicky: "The state wage freeze combined with loss of school bonus and rises in utilities has left me thousands of dollars much worse off financially than two years ago. Pub prices have finally dropped but I can't afford to go and I work full-time." Shane: "It's not easy. I work six days a week and will be for a very long time to come just to keep on top of the bills. Interest rates have never been lower but the cost of living has never been higher. Every year everything is going up (except food) but my wages are not." Siobhan: "I'm loving the fact rents are lowering and that there's more choice." Kate: "Coffee is a tiny bit cheaper and the train is less crowded. That's about it."

Cheaper coffee is one of the changes since the downturn. ( ABC Radio Perth: Emma Wynne )

Jobs 'less secure, not long term'

Dr Ong said the problem was that although housing affordability had eased, the labour market had also changed dramatically.

"Before the mining boom slowed down, a typical job was a full-time job with quite a lot of stability and it was much easier to get into long-term employment contracts," she said.

"We are seeing the labour market become much more precarious and unstable.

"We are seeing a growth in casual work and people having to potentially go from one contract to another over really short periods of time."

ABC Radio Perth listeners agreed.

Jacquie: "We are heading back east. Ten employers in five years is enough." Maddy: "Work is hard to find." Michael: "Wages have been slashed."

Poorest still cannot compete in rental market

Even high vacancy rates — currently there are 10,800 properties for rent in Perth — and downward pressure on rents have not helped the very poorest.

"We are just not seeing the gains filter through to those who are the most vulnerable in the population," Dr Ong said.

A person with a middle to lower income might now find it easier to enter the rental market, Dr Ong said, but people in the bottom 10 per cent still cannot compete.

"Landlords want to make some kind of profit from their rental property, and a lot of landlords will hold out for quite a long time at the rental rate they want," Dr Ong said.

Despite high vacancy rates, rents have not fallen enough to help those on very low incomes. ( 720 ABC Perth: Emma Wynne )

Meanwhile, existing home owners are facing the prospect of property prices falling for the third year in a row in 2017; grim news for investors or those who need to sell.

Population growth has also stalled, further decreasing demand for housing.

"Western Australia has experienced the steepest decline in interstate migration in decades," Dr Ong said.

"There are also quite a lot of 457 visa holders who have left as well."

Housing glut?

An apartment glut has been predicted for 2017 as major developments — years in the making — reach completion.

"I am finding it hard to get a decent price for the unit I am trying to sell. The market is flooded with ex-rentals that people are trying to get rid of," ABC Radio Perth listener Mike said.

And a January Fitch Ratings report warned that home building in Western Australia had outstripped population growth over the last two years.

"Fitch Ratings believes that Western Australia shows signs of persisting housing oversupply — a trait that may affect mortgage performance as house prices drop," the report said.

Dr Ong said she believed conditions were unlikely to change anytime soon.

"It's not typical for any state or nation to experience the kind of economic boom that WA had," she said.

"It was an abnormal scenario. What we have right now is a return to normal.

"It doesn't feel normal because we had that economic bonanza for such a long period.

"But rather than entering a recession, we are actually returning to what is a normal, long-term trend."