- Vacancy rate now just 0.6 per cent
- House rents up $20 over December quarter to $540 a week
- Unit rents up too by $15 to $445 per week
- Gold Coast outperforms Brisbane
In recent times here at The Property Tribune we have reported on the hot Gold Coast market.
This market has seen a string of new developments such as Aniko’s Hope Island project and high auction sales including the “best ever” auction sales event Ray White Surfers Paradise has ever seen.
Many of these developments and sales, however, have been targeted at owner-occupier and downsizers – as opposed to property investors.
This has adversely affected the number of properties available for rent.
Rentals are in short supply with a vacancy rate of just 0.6 per cent compared to 1.9 per cent in 2019, according to Domain’s Rental Data for the December 2020 quarter.
SQM Research data has shown that some southern Gold Coast suburbs have an even lower vacancy rate. Currumbin, for example, saw its vacancy rate drop to just 0.3 per cent in December 2020.
This has subsequently led to an increase in both house and unit rental prices. Houses are up $20 making weekly rent $540 with units increasing by $15 taking the unit weekly rent to $445, according to the Domain report.
This trend has been ongoing for some time with rents increasing over the past five years by 15.2 per cent for houses and units by 17.1 per cent over that time frame.
All of this confirms that the Gold Coast is outperforming its own capital city, Brisbane.
The same report reveals that while Brisbane’s rental market is in its strongest shape in a decade, the weekly median rent for houses of $425 is far behind that of the Gold Coast.
Units are $400 per week, which is also below the Gold Coast, although it should be noted there is only a $25 difference between the median unit and house rents in the Queensland capital.
By contrast, there is $95 a week gap between median house and unit prices for the Gold Coast.
A potential solution
Today, the Gold Coast Mayor, Tom Tate, told ABC News that City of the Gold Coast Council is considering the release of blocks of land – some as small as 400 square metres – to increase the supply of housing for residents.
Though it was remarked this about the size of a basketball court, Cr Tate told the ABC that this was “better than nothing”.
Time will tell whether supply from new developments and the release of more land increases by enough to stabilise rental prices.
