Renting

Renting
Cotality: National rental price growth sees slowdown
Rental price increases in Australia saw a slowdown last quarter, with their lowest second-quarter increase since 2020 nationally. After shifting higher through the busy first quarter by 1.7%, Cotaility found that the change in national rental values is once again trending lower, with rents up by just 1.3% in the three months to June. The 2024-25 financial year also saw a slowdown in rental price increases, with a rise of just 3.4%, the lowest since the 12 months to February 2021, where there was a 3% rise. At the median level, that is equivalent to a A$22 per week or A$1,134 per year increase in rents. Cotality economists, Kaytlin Ezzy said the recent moderation in rent happened despite the remaining rental supply being exceptionally low. She said that over the four weeks leading to 29 June, Cotality observed 100,000 rental listings, and roughly 23% were below the previous five-year average or around 29,000 fewer listings than are normally observed at this time of year. “The shortfall in rental listings has seen the national vacancy rate slip to 1.6% in June, only slightly above the record lows seen in early 2024 (1.5%), and less than half the pre-COVID decade average of 3.3%,” she said. “The slowdown in renta
Renting
Brisbane rent prices steady for first time since 2022
Queensland house rent rates have not increased quarter-on-quarter for the first time since December 2022. Despite this, renters aren’t out of the woods yet as Brisbane rent prices reach record high median prices of $650 per week. The price has remained steady over three months, marking the first flat result since December 2022 according to Domain. Domain chief of research and economics Nicola Powell said while it’s still a landlords, the worst of the rental squeeze has passed for tenants. “Over 2023 and 2024 we saw double-digit growth that tenants simply couldn’t sustain,” she said. “And they’ve since sought cheaper rentals or gone into house shares.” “So now we have an unusual dynamic in Brisbane. It’s still a landlord’s market and the vacancy rate is at 0.7% – barely above the record low of 0.6.” According to Ray White Brisbane Apartments associate director, Ben Stockwell, tight vacancy rates are driving prices higher with one-bedroom units now renting for up to $800 even without a carpark. “Over the past 12 months, that price has shifted a lot. A year ago, we’d rent a one-bedroom for about $650 per week,” he said. “You’ve got a real demographic mix of tenants too – working professionals, students and,
Renting
Australian rental investor numbers drop by 0.3%
The number of Australians declaring rental income has declined by 0.3%, the largest annual drop in more than a decade. Rental investor numbers fell by 7,081 in 2022-2023, per the Australian Tax Office. This is just the third ever annual decrease, and the largest since 2008-2009, during the global financial crisis. Housing values rose by 8.1% in 2023, and have continued to gain so far in 2025. “Although value rises have been broad-based, the pace of growth remains mild compared to mid-2023 when the quarterly rate of growth in national home values peaked at 3.3%, and for that matter, positively tepid relative to the extreme 8.1% quarterly peak growth recorded through the height of the pandemic,” said Cotality research director Tim Lawless. The number of rental investors increased by 18,698 in 2020-2021, and by 22,622 in 2021-2022. A decline of 333 was also seen in 2019-2020, impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Rental investors owning more than one property dropped significantly in 2022-2023. Investors with two properties fell by 1.1%, while those with six or more fell by 2.9%. The number of rental investors owning just one property grew by 0.1%, however. Investors represented 33% of property lending in March 2023
Renting
Australia's Property Council welcomes NSW budget plan
Measures in the NSW Budget to help increase the rental supply in Greater Sydney and beyond were welcomed by the Property Council of Australia. The changes introduced in the budget include the 50% land tax discount on build-to-rent developments remaining in place indefinitely as opposed to expiring in 2039 as originally planned. “We’re particularly pleased to see long-term certainty for Build-to-rent, record funding for construction skills, continued support for Building Commission NSW – meeting our call for sustained investment to maintain momentum on quality, compliance and consumer confidence – and a new works-in-kind framework to guide developer-led state infrastructure,” Property Council of Australia NSW Exectuvive Director Katie Stevenson said. Some of the other measures included in the Budget were A$145 million in recurrent funding for the Building Commission NSW, draft works-in-kind guidelines to support infrastructure delivery and housing feasibility and more. The Property Council of Australia NSW Executive Director Katie Stevenson said the budget was a critical opportunity to make headway on the state's housing targets while boosting investor confidence and project viability. “Everything we’ve heard so far
Renting
Half of rental properties sold within two years: AHURI
Half of all rental properties in Australia are sold within two years, according to a report by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI). The average investment period is almost four years, however. About 22% of landlords sell after just one year. “Landlords who are ill-positioned to retain their rental investments for long can disrupt the supply of private rental housing, with potentially negative impacts on tenant affordability and security,” said Curtin University’s Ranjodh Singh, the report’s lead author. “The research confirms some conventional wisdoms about who we might expect to be a landlord in Australia, but it also has some less intuitive findings.” According to the report, about 28% of landlords continue to provide a rental property for at least 20 years. Those who buy or keep their rental properties for longer tend to be aged in their late 40s to early 50s, earn a higher-than-average income, and own a home. Landlords likely to sell their rental properties tend to be preparing for retirement, unemployed, lower-income, or under the age of 35. While those aged 25-34 are more likely to buy a rental property than other age groups, they are also more likely to sell quickly. Programs that c

Renting
Darwin is second largest capital city for house rentals
Rent across the combined capitals has reaccelerated in March compared to the previous quarter, according to the Domain March Rental Report. Despite this, it was the slowest March quarter increase in four years. Out of all the capital cities, Darwin saw the largest increase year on year for houses, with a 7.7% rise. The city has also become the second most expensive capital city to rent in, tying with Canberra and just trailing behind Syndey. The median price for renting a house in Darwin has reached a brand-new high of A$700. Dr Nicola Powell told ABC News that the increase in rental prices in Darwin is likely due to a “mismatch in demand and supply”. "When you have a vacancy rate below 2% it shows that it is a landlord's market and we've got to remember that Darwin's vacancy rate is sitting at 0.6 per cent," Dr Powell said. Annual growth for the rental price of houses has slowed to its lowest point in nearly five years for Sydney and Perth, just over four years in Brisbane and Adelaide and just over three years in Melbourne. Hobart was the capital city with the lowest median house rental price, with the price growing 3.6% year-on-year.Credit: ABC NewsAs for unit rental prices, it has slowed to its lowest poin
Renting
Victoria's rental community doing it tough: PropTrack
A new report from PropTrack has found that Victorian renters are facing the hardest conditions in 15 years. While the latest Rental Affordability Report called Victoria the nation's most affordable for tenants when contrasting typical wages with rental costs, it has seen a drastic increase in price, and just half of the state's properties advertised in the second half of last year were within reach for a typical household. A typical household in 2020 and 2021 were able to afford to rent 75% of Victorian homes without spending more than a quarter of their income. In the months between July and December 2024, this had fallen to 54%, and for Victorians on the lower-income end it was less than 10%. These mark the toughest times for renters in the state since 2010, when State Library records show petrol cost just $1.19 a litre and Melbourne’s median house price sat at just $456,000.Credit: REA Group However, more broadly REA Group senior economist and author of the report, Angus Moore says that it is doing better than other states. The report found that overall rental affordability was worse in New South Wales, and other states weren't far behind, and looking nationwide renters are “facing the worst level of rental affo
Renting
Renting swaps home ownership for Gen Z American Dream
A staggering 84% of Gen Z Americans say they're satisfied with renting and almost half of American renters say it has enhanced their quality of life, flipping the perception of home ownership as part of the American Dream on its head. A report by U.S. property behemoth Cortland, which has US$20.3 billion in property assets across the country, showed that out of 1,000 adult renters in the United States generations across the board have indicated that they are at least somewhat satisfied with their current renting situation as an alternative. 84% of Gen Z and 81% of millennials agree, while among the older generations, 71% of Gen X and older prefer renting over buying a home and all it necessitates. Top reasons given by respondents for choosing to rent were affordability (59%), location convenience (51%), and maintenance/support (49%). Those who intend to be lifelong renters report higher expectations for rental properties (53%), and renters overall generally believe renting can meet their needs and preferences in a similar way to homeownership (49%). A third of renters who feel renting has enhanced their quality of life attribute the improvement to a sense of community (34%).Lack of affordabilityAnd in terms of out