- Latest data shows a 0.7% vacancy rate with 1,405 vacancies listed
- Lowest vacancy rate since June 2008
- Weekly rent has been growling steadily over the past decade
SQM Research data has shown the rental market has continued to tighten with a vacancy rate of just 0.7% recorded in Dec 2020 with 1,405 vacancies listed.
The vacancy rate last peaked in December 2016 when 3,375 vacancies were listed.
Since late 2016 and early 2017, both the number of vacancies and the vacancy rate have decreased significantly.
The latest vacancy rate is the lowest since June 2008, which saw a 0.5 per cent vacany rate.
However, not even this was the lowest vacancy rate the City of Churches has seen.
March 2006 saw a 0.4% vacancy rate with only 467 vacancies – the lowest figure since data began in 2005.
Select part of the chart to zoom in on various years, and ‘reset zoom’ button to return.
In other data from SQM, the weekly asking rent has been growing steadily over the past decade, with the asking rent in both January and February 2021 being $425 for houses and units at $317.
In terms of how long listings have been on the market, the latest data from SQM shows approximately 76% of property listed has been on the market for under 30 days.
The portion of listings falling within the 30-60 day range has been strongly correlated with the under 30-day range and has been tightening too in recent times as tenants snap up rentals faster than before.
Historically, the 60-90- and 90-180-day ranges did record an increase relative to other ranges over the past decade, especially during 2016 and 2017 when the number of vacancies peaked.
Interestingly, the portion of properties that have been listed for more than 180 days has not moved much in recent years- suggesting some properties are still hard to match with suitable tenants.
