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A buyer’s agent has raised concerns around the availability of rental accommodation to support the influx of international students and foreign workers coming into the city of Perth.
Resolve Property Solutions’ Peter Gavalas has acknowledged that the increase in international migration will have a benefit to the West Australian economy, but he has warned that Perth “desperately needs more accommodation to house everyone.”
“The city’s rental stock is at a historical low, with over 18,000 properties removed from the rental pool since January 2021,” he raised.
Conceding that many investors have sold off to cash in on the capital gains available, he noted that “rental properties aren’t being replaced, with recent Australian Bureau of Statistics data showing investor lending has fallen off a cliff.”
“As a result, Perth is massively undersupplied for rentals, with the city recording a 5.3 per cent annual drop in the number of available properties in January.”
It’s against this backdrop that the influx of international students will create even more pressure in an already stretched marketplace, especially given the already short supply of student housing.
Mr Gavalas pointed out: “The Property Council of Australia recently estimated there were 27 students for every bed, compared to a nationwide average of 19, so returning students are bound to put pressure on the private market.”
“On top of that, you’ve got the Centre for Population projecting net overseas migration of over 20,000 people in Perth this year — all of whom will need to live somewhere.”
“That’s not to say that Perth’s economy doesn’t benefit from international workers and students — it does, with international education boosting [Western Australia’s] gross state product by $2.1 billion in 2019 alone. Rather, the city desperately needs more rental properties,” the buyer’s agent continued.
“Fortunately, low vacancy rates, rising rents and Perth’s housing affordability are starting to tempt property investors back into the market, so, fingers crossed, this will soon filter through and alleviate some of the pressure.”
Rising rents have “soared” due to the lack of supply; Mr Gavalas has highlighted that the average weekly rental for a house jumped 15.2 per cent in the final quarter of 2022 — to $530.
That’s “the largest annual increase of all the capital cities,” he shared.
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