NORTH-West Victoria’s rental vacancies have dropped even further, as availability across the country hits a record low.
According to PropTrack’s Market Insight Report, the national rental vacancy rate was only 1.02 per cent in October, falling 0.06 percentage points over the month.
In regional Victoria, the vacancy rate dropped under 1 per cent with an incredibly limited supply of available rentals.
For the north-west, the vacancy rate dropped to a much lower 0.59 per cent, down 0.07 per cent since September and 0.2 per cent since the previous year.
In the survey, north-west Victoria encapsulates the Mallee and Wimmera regions, including Mildura, Kerang, Horsham and parts of the Rural City of Swan Hill.
PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty said incredibly tight conditions remained for Victorian renters.
“Just 1.02 per cent of rentals were vacant in October, with vacancies down in both capital city and regional areas, and record lows reached in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland,” she said.
“The national vacancy rate has been trending down for well over three years now – a trend that looks likely to continue off the back of strong population growth and a slowdown in the supply of new housing.
“Melbourne and Sydney have seen the sharpest falls in available rentals over the past 12 months, with vacancy down 0.55 percentage points and 0.35 percentage points respectively.
“Conditions have also deteriorated in regional areas, with vacancy down 0.31 percentage points over the quarter.”
Suburbtrends’ Rental Pain Index, released last month, outlined a number of areas with vacancy rates below 1 per cent.
Suburbtrends founder Kent Lardner said the “strikingly low” vacancy rates “exacerbate the existing rental stress, making it increasingly difficult for renters to find suitable housing”.
The analysis company said that the north-west had an average rental value increase of 23.08 per cent in the past 12 months.
It also said renters in the north-west spent an average of 23.72 per cent of their wage on rent.
