Source: Australian Property Journal
Rental availability continues to shrink, as vacancy rates across more than half of Queensland LGAs and sub regions reached record levels in the first quarter of the year.
According to REIQ’s Residential Vacancy Report for the March quarter, rental stock is fast running out in the Sunshine State, with record lows most apparent in the Tablelands Region and Southern Downs Region where vacancy rates are tightest at 0.1%.
Likewise in the regional areas of South Burnett, Gympie and Goondiwindi, the vacancy rate has hit a decade low at 0.2%.
Maryborough was also at 0.2%, though this was improved from the final quarter of 2021 which was at 0.1%.
28 of the Queensland 50 LGAs and sub regions tracked in the report, reached either equal record lows or new records, with all experiencing rates at 1.5% or below, excluding Redland’s Bay Islands.
This is well below what REIQ terms a “healthy” vacancy rate, ranging from 2.6% to 3.5%, and well into the “tight” range of 0% to 2.5%.
“While we continue to see regional markets gradually tightening, Brisbane’s vacancy rates have taken a dramatic dive this quarter, especially when looking at the 0-5km Inner Brisbane ring,” said Antonia Mercorella, CEO of REIQ.
The state’s capital saw the most significant decline over the quarter, as Brisbane LGA rates hit 1.1% and Greater Brisbane fell to 0.7%, with Inner Brisbane dropping to 1.5%, Middle Brisbane to 0.9% and Outer Brisbane to 0.6%.
“This drop could reflect the return of international students as well as hospitality and entertainment workers to the inner city, or simply prospective renters focusing their search in areas where the vacancy rate is healthier and they have more options and therefore better prospects,” said Mercocella.
Notably, Queensland has also experienced a significant surge in interstate migration since the onset of the global pandemic, as Australians sought out more lifestyle-focused locations in the wake of working from home and ongoing lockdowns.
“Yet another factor that’s added to the squeeze on rental stock during this quarter is the February flooding disaster displacing people from their homes,” added Mercocella.
On top of this, Mercorella noted that the market has seen an uptick in owner occupiers as investors sell their properties, removing more stock from the rental market.
