This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
QUEENSLAND’S vacancy rate saw a slight over the June quarter, rising from 0.9% to 1.0% and leaving Queenslanders with little more housing choice.
According to the latest data from REIQ, the June quarter saw half of the states 50 LGA and sub regions record a lift in vacancies, 12 remain stable and 13 tighten. With only two areas classified as healthy, while 47 were tight and one was weak.
“A healthy vacancy rate is one that sits between 2.6% to 3.5% and that’s virtually unheard of at the moment in Queensland. In our state’s capital city, just 1.2% of properties were available and remained advertised for rent for more than three weeks over the quarter – and this places it above average,” said Antonia Mercorella, CEO at REIQ.
“We are not painting a picture of good health in our state when it comes to balancing rental demand with supply, and we know competition is particularly intensified at the highly sought after, more affordable end of the market.”
The two healthy rates for the quarter were Noosa at 2.6% and Mount Isa at 2.7%, with Redland’s Bay weak at 3.7%.
Regional Queensland was in no way spared from the strained market, with nine areas classified as “extremely tight” or recording rates of 0.5% or lower.
This included Cook at 0.0%, Goondiwindi at 0.1%, Charters Towers at 0.2%, Tablelands at 0.2%, Banana at 0.3%, Maranoa at 0.3%, Southern Downs at 0.4%, Maryborough at 0.5% and Central Highlands at 0.5%.
While Brisbane was at 1.2%, Inner Brisbane at 1.4%, middle ring Brisbane at 1.1% and Greater Brisbane at 1.0%.
“Tight vacancy rates indicate that there’s not enough rental properties coming up for rent, possibly due to tightly held leases which are being renewed at the end of the agreement rather than being returned to the market,” added Mercorella.
“In tight markets that have a severe shortage of properties, if an advertised rental property isn’t moving relatively quickly, it suggests that there could be a mismatch between what it offers and the needs of those looking for a place to live.”
Increases to vacancies were limited across the board but the greatest shifts over the quarter was Noosa with a 0.7% boost, the Scenic Rim, Sunshine Coast, Hinterland and Maroochy Coast all up by 0.4% and the Caloundra Coast and Gold Coast each up by 0.3%.
According to the latest Rental Pain Index from Suburbtrends, the percentage of SA2s nationally with an index of 75 or higher was up from 63% in July to 68% in August, with the index highest in Queensland at 83.
With the recent PropTrack Rental Report June showing national rents remained unchanged over the June quarter, at $600 per week, but renters have been slugged with a 9.1% increase – worth $50 – over FY24.
