After a seasonal relief over the month of December, potential tenants found themselves in a tight situation again last month as vacancy rates creeps back to the lowest point on record.
Domain’s latest data showed that the national vacancy rate went down to 0.8% from 1.1% in December.
Perth and Adelaide were the most competitive rental markets during the month, as their vacancy rates dropped to 0.3%.
For Perth, this recent vacancy reading is the lowest on record.
Meanwhile, Adelaide’s vacancy rate is marginally higher than the record low of 0.2% last seen in October 2022.
All capital cities reported tighter rental conditions over the month.
Even the combined regional markets posted a lower vacancy rate in January, down to 0.8% from 0.9% in December.
Table 1: Vacancy Rates
| Jan-23 | Dec-22 | Jan-22 | Monthly change | Annual change | |
| National | 0.8% | 1.1% | 1.3% | ↓ | ↓ |
| Combined capitals | 0.9% | 1.1% | 1.6% | ↓ | ↓ |
| Combined regionals | 0.8% | 0.9% | 0.6% | ↓ | ↑ |
| Sydney | 1.0% | 1.4% | 1.9% | ↓ | ↓ |
| Melbourne | 1.0% | 1.4% | 2.7% | ↓ | ↓ |
| Brisbane | 0.8% | 0.9% | 1.0% | ↓ | ↓ |
| Perth | 0.3% | 0.4% | 0.5% | ↓ | ↓ |
| Adelaide | 0.3% | 0.4% | 0.3% | ↓ | – |
| Hobart | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.2% | ↑ | ↑ |
| Canberra | 1.5% | 1.7% | 0.7% | ↓ | ↑ |
| Darwin | 1.3% | 1.4% | 0.9% | ↓ | ↑ |
“Low supply is driving a landlords’ market across all capital cities, worsening an ongoing rental crisis in many parts of the country,” the Domain report said.
“The continued growth in asking rents, along with increasing demand, exacerbates a highly competitive environment for tenants.”
Furthermore, the return of international and domestic travel, overseas migration, and foreign students intensified the rental demand pressures, resulting in a more competitive market for potential tenants.
Meanwhile, vacant rental listings are 35.1% lower annually, reaching an all-time low for the month of January.
Rental listings were down in most capital cities, with Melbourne posting the biggest annual drop of 61.1%.
Overall, capital cities reported an annual fall of 47% in vacant rental listings despite the increases in Hobart, Canberra, and Darwin.
Across regional markets, vacant rental listings went up 25.1% higher than in January last year.
Table 2: Vacant Rental Listings
| Number of Listings | Monthly change | Annual change | |
| National | 20,939 | -20.4% | -36.1% |
| Sydney | 6,135 | -28.0% | -44.0% |
| Melbourne | 4,830 | -26.2% | -61.1% |
| Brisbane | 1,884 | -15.0% | -25.9% |
| Perth | 630 | -12.0% | -35.3% |
| Adelaide | 362 | -18.5% | -12.6% |
| Hobart | 123 | 11.8% | 105.0% |
| Canberra | 581 | -7.0% | 90.5% |
| Darwin | 218 | -10.3% | 29.0% |
| Combined capitals | 14,763 | -24.0% | -47.0% |
| Combined regionals | 6,176 | -10.2% | 25.1% |
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Photo by tierramallorca on Unsplash.
