Australian rental markets have shown signs of tentative recovery. Rents in some areas are slightly up following below average growth over the last 12 months.
According to the Rent Review Report released by RP Data for the September quarter, average prices climbed 2.8 percent and 2.9 percent in capital cities and regional areas respectively in the 12 months to September 30. The strongest quarterly growth was recorded in Canberra at 10 percent and Adelaide at 6.7 percent.
Home rental prices were still steady for the quarter, with flat increase in all capital cities except Canberra, which saw a 3.1 percent increase in rental rates and Melbourne, which recorded a 1.4 percent growth.
However, Adelaide, Darwin and Perth all recorded flat growth in home rental prices, while Canberra and Brisbane saw a 2.4 percent and 1.4 percent decline.
In contrast, the report said units usually saw a slight increase in advertised rents over the year, with Brisbane being the only city to see flat unit rents. Hobart and Melbourne saw the greatest growth in unit rental rates at 4.7 percent and 4.5 percent respectively.
The data provided some evidence suggesting that landlords are already starting to raise weekly rents, said RP Data analyst Cameron Kusher.
“Growth rates across house and unit rental markets are still well below the average annual level of rental growth recorded at seven percent and 7.3 percent respectively,” said Kusher. ”In recent times unit rental markets have been outperforming houses.”
This reflected the increase in demand for units, as affordability pressures grow and lifestyle preferences change, he said.