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New data shows stabilising rental market in Australia

By Eliot Hastie
14 May 2018 | 11 minute read
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The national rental market has flattened out across the country, with rental prices becoming more affordable overall.

The monthly market report from rent.com.au showed that over April, units across Australia had a 0 per cent change and only a marginal change of +1.18 per cent for houses.

The national median stayed the same at $440 a week, while houses were slightly cheaper at $430 and the average price per room was $180.

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The largest downward turn was in Melbourne where apartments took a 4.76 per cent tumble.

Rent.com.au CEO Greg Bader said that the Melbourne rental market remained strong and competitive but appeared to be stagnating.

“An influx of first home buyers likely cashed up by stamp duty concessions have contributed to this slowing in the market because they look at more affordable options in the outer and western suburbs,” the CEO said.

The most affordable apartment room prices are found in Adelaide with prices at $147 a week, while the least affordable were in Canberra at $360 a week.

Perth remained the most affordable capital with an average rent of $122 a week across all property types, followed by Adelaide at $132 a week and Brisbane at $155 a week.

Regional rents remained the same, with only New South Wales recording a decrease in median rent of 1.3 per cent.

South Australia and Tasmania saw their regional rents rise by 3.9 per cent and 3.7 per cent, respectively, while regional areas in Northern Tasmania did not change but were still the most expensive to rent at $450 a week.

Perth was the only state capital to see apartments moving faster over the month, with days on market speeding up by 10.7 per cent.

On the east coast, the story was quite different, with the times slowing down, most considerably in Hobart which now takes 28.1 per cent longer to shift apartments.

Mr Bader said that the slowdown was in line with traditional April figures.

“The number of properties leased in April dropped in every capital in April, likely the result of a drawn-out holiday period that included the tail-end of Easter, school holidays and ANZAC Day,” the CEO said.

In Sydney, apartments and houses remained stable over April, with rents at $530 for apartments and $600 for houses.

Melbourne’s median apartment price decreased by 4.76 per cent to $400 a week, while house prices remained stable at $420.

Brisbane’s house rentals jumped by 1.2 per cent to hit $420, while units dropped by 1.27 per cent to $390.

Perth’s markets saw continued growth with a 1.59 per cent increase for apartments to $320 and a 2.78 per cent house price increase to $350.

Adelaide’s weekly apartment rents fell by 1.69 per cent to $290, while houses increased to $375, which reflects a 7.14 per cent jump over the past 12 months.

Hobart apartments remained stable at $250 and houses fell by 2.22 per cent, which is the first decrease since August 2017.

Darwin’s house prices reached a four-month high after a 2.04 per cent increase to $500 a week, while apartments fell by 4.21 per cent to $364 a week.

Canberra’s apartment rents fell by 2.27 per cent to $430 a week, while house rents climbed by 1.96 per cent to $520 a week.

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