Students depart
December is typically a big month for rental vacancies, and 2019 proved to be no exception, with a national vacancy rates of 2.5 per cent or 85,491 listings.
Despite the apartment construction boom, the national vacancy rate was no however than in 2018, however, suggesting a peak for vacancies.
The highest vacancy rate was in Sydney at 3.6 per cent, although there was no increase year-on-year in the harbour city, suggesting that peak may now be in.
Perth now has a vacancy rate as low as Melbourne at 2.5 per cent, well down from 3.4 per cent a year earlier and continuing to tighten.
Adelaide and Hobart had very tight rental markets at 1.1 per cent and 0.6 per cent respectively in the month of December.
Looking at the last 6 months, not seasonally adjusted, shows how Perth's tightening rental market continues apace.
You can click the below chart to expand it:
Brisbane has started the year with a burst of energy at open homes, with multiple offers going in on houses.
Darwin's property market, on the other hand, is a disaster zone, with asking prices collapsing over the 10 years to January 2020 as mining and resources construction activity has dried up.
The pace of the decline seems to be accelerating nastily according to the most timely available data.
The wrap
December tends to be a month with plenty of rental vacancies as international students depart.
However, it seems as though the peak is now in for vacancy rates:.
Louis Christopher, SQM Research:
'It is actually quite likely we have reached the peak in national rental vacancy rates with ongoing strong population growth absorbing current surplus rental stock over 2020.'
