Rental vacancies down
Rental vacancies declined to 2.1 per cent in July, down from 2.3 per cent a year earlier, according to SQM Research.
Most capital cities recorded a decline, including Sydney, which fell from 3.8 per cent to 3.6 per cent.
Perth's rental market is now tightening quite noticeably, at just 1.3 per cent.
Darwin can be a bit seasonal, but recorded a big drop to just 1.4 per cent, a record low for the Northern Territory capital on this data series.
Melbourne, on the other hand, is the one city where rental vacancies are heading the other way, rising a notch to 3.1 per cent in July.
This is now a significant shift for Melbourne from just 2 per cent a year earlier, partly reflecting the shutdown, but also that building activity remained relatively much stronger for longer than elsewhere.
The below chart smooths the figures out on a 6mMA basis to give you an idea of the trend.
Sydney finally looks to be rolling over now, with the vacancy rate for the harbour city having run as high as 4 per cent during May.
Vacancy rates in the major Central Business Districts did decline in July, but remain at highly elevated levels, and this has been reflected in declining rents, reported SQM.
Year-on-year rents are well down in Sydney, with Melbourne now recording clear declines too.
Generally speaking there has been a shift outwards in the rental market demand, as a direct result of COVID-19.
