Rents climb at fastest pace on record

Weekly rents post fastest quarterly rise and largest annual increase ever as rental crisis continues

Rents climb at fastest pace on record

National rents rose at the fastest quarterly pace on record in the September quarter and are set to keep rising as the rental crisis continues, according to new data from PropTrack.

The PropTrack Market Insight Report showed that weekly rental prices climbed 4.3% over the September quarter. The report also showed an advertised rental rate increase of 10.3% year on year, the largest annual rise on record, according to The Australian. This comes after a 2.2% medial weekly advertised rent rise in the June quarter.

Cameron Kusher, PropTrack director of economic research, told The Australian that rents were climbing thanks to low rental stock volume and a strong demand for rental accommodation that is giving landlords the latitude to hike rents.

“With the supply of rental stock remaining extremely tight and migration to Australia lifting, we anticipate rents to continue to rise over the coming quarters,” Kusher said. “Capital cities are expected to see the lion’s share of growth as demand and subsequent rental price growth softens in the regions.”

The national weekly median rent for houses was $500 in the September quarter, while the rent for units was $450 – the widest differential on record, The Australian reported.

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Capital city rents rose 3.2% quarter on quarter and 7.8% year on year to a median advertised weekly rent of $520. Regional rents, at $470, were unchanged quarter over quarter but up 12.5% from the prior year.

House rents have risen at a faster pace than unit rents over the past year, The Australian reported. House rents have climbed 11.1%, while unit rents have risen 7.1%.