Market still has "a long way to go," but green shoots are emerging, REIQ says
The Real Estate Institute of Queensland has noted signs of improvement in the state's rental conditions as consecutive lifts in the residential vacancy rate indicate progress.
According to the REIQ Residential Vacancy Rate Report for the June quarter, the state-wide vacancy rate has risen to 1% for the first time since December 2021. While most regions in Queensland maintain a tight vacancy rate, there were notable changes over the quarter.
“We’re starting to see some early signs of the rental market starting to soften just ever so slightly, with vacancy rates showing small increases in the majority of regions,” said Antonia Mercorella, CEO of REIQ. “It was too early to call in the March quarter, which also saw a slight lift, but now with back-to-back, quarter on quarter improvement, we can see some promising green shoots. There is still a long way to go for Queensland’s rental market to reach healthy rates, but these results are a step in the right direction with a little more movement and increasing opportunity and choice for renters wanting to get into the market.”
The report found that outer suburban areas showed slight improvements, while inner cities remained resilient. The growing rental housing stock in higher price point suburbs may have reached its peak, leading to more opportunities and choices for renters, REIQ said.
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Some areas in Queensland experienced substantial vacancies, such as Maroochy Coast, Sunshine Coast, and Caloundra Coast, indicating a potential decline in demand for holiday rentals during the winter months. However, popular holiday markets like Noosa may have stabilised rental prices as the median rent for a three-bedroom house remained unchanged compared to the previous year.
In regional rental markets, certain areas, like Cook and Goondiwindi, maintained extremely low vacancy rates, while Bundaberg saw improvement. Mount Isa stands out as an exception, with a healthy vacancy rate of 2.7%, REIQ reported.
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