Vacancy Rates Remained Steady at 1.0%
Capital City asking rents rise at slower pace of 0.5%.

SQM Research today has revealed national vacancy rates have held steady at 1.0%, unchanged from February 2024 and down slightly from March 2023.

The total number of rental vacancies Australia-wide now stands at 31,356 residential properties. Perth and Adelaide continue to record the tightest rental markets across our capital cities with each city recording a rental vacancy rate of just 0.5%.

Both Sydney and Melbourne recorded the same rental vacancy rate of 1.1%, though Melbourne did record a slight rise in vacancies from the previous month of February.

Vacancy rates in the Sydney CBD, Melbourne CBD and Brisbane CBD, Adelaide CBD and Canberra CBD increased to 3.9%, 3.0%, 2.3%, 1.0% and 3.5% over March.

Rents

Over the past 30 days to 15 April 2024, the capital city asking rents for all units continued its rising trend and rose by a further 1.3% with the 12-month rise standing at 9.2%. Canberra and Hobart recorded declines in rents of 0.3% and 1.1% respectively. Perth recorded the fastest increase of 2.8%.

Capital city rents for houses fell by 0.1%, thereby reducing the overall pace of rental rises for our capital cities to a 0.5% increase for the past 30 days. Overall national rents, taking into account the regions, rose by 1% for the same period.

The national median weekly asking rent for a dwelling is recorded at $621.84 per week. Sydney recorded the highest weekly rent for a house at $1,053.56 per week. While currently, Hobart units offer the best rental affordability of all capital cities at $461.36 per week.
 

Louis Christopher, Managing Director of SQM Research said:

“National rental vacancy rates for the month of March were actually up a little on the absolute numbers; but the overall vacancy rate just managed to stay steady. The immediate outlook is vacancy rates are set to rise somewhat into the cooler months. This is the normal seasonality we get at this time of year so one should be a little careful about reading into these rises. Nevertheless, it might provide some minor relief to tenants who still have excessive difficulties in finding longer term rental accommodation around the country.
The full year outlook remains the same in that we expect overall tight vacancy rates to be with us for 2024, driven by a fall in dwelling completions relative to growing demand.”
 

Distressed Property of the Week

6 Sapphire Crescent, Sapphire Beach, NSW 2450

This week's property report features a 4-bedroom, 1-bathroom house located on the Sapphire Crescent, Sapphire Beach. This house is from 1960's and is located near the original Saphire Beach and surrounded by the bush creating the calming and simple atmosphere. For the family with kids this area offers 5 government schools, 3 independent schools and 1 catholic school. 

The close distance to the Sapphire Beach impacts the price of this property. However, since the initial price listed on 2nd February 2024 as 1,180,000 it has been reduced and now states at $1,095,000. This price falls into the estimate range in this area is from 1,04 million to 1,15 million. Additionally, for the last 6-month 4-bedroom houses/apartment in Sapphire Beach was sold between $1,065,000 to 2,200,000. 
This house was last sold on 22 March 2021 with the price of $840,000.

Now, if you think it is a good deal, let’s look at the numbers to gauge the property's financial appeal. Over the last 12 months, the vacancy rate for postcode 2450 has decreased from 2.2% in March 2023 to 1.0% in March 2024. Asking sales prices for all houses have significantly increased by 23.2% over the last 12 months to 15 April 2024. The gross rental yield on all houses currently sits at 3.5%.  

Moreover, asking rents for all houses in postcode 2450 have increased over the year by 7.5% and continue to increase. Given these figures, arm yourself with the latest market research. 

Monitor this market and others with SQM Research’s free property data. Also consider the SQM Property Explorer product for more in-depth data and property price estimator.

Auction Results

for the week ending 14 April 2024
Full individual auction results can be found on our website:

Auction Listings*

for the week ending 21 February 2024

* The above counts of auctions represent most recent known auction dates for the coming week.

Real Estate Realities

Melbourne’s crazy rich mansions: Ritzy real estate that could crack house price record

Melbourne's record for the highest house price, valued at over $80 million, is poised to be surpassed soon, as some of the most luxurious real estate ever to grace the city's property market is now available for purchase.

Ranked among the world's top locations where millionaire and billionaire residences are likely to yield profits in 2024, Melbourne is witnessing a growing trend of affluent individuals seeking to capitalize on their investments.

From a prestigious Mornington Peninsula stud farm, known for breeding a Melbourne Cup-winning horse, to numerous opulent mansions located in the city's most exclusive neighborhoods, these properties are commanding price tags in excess of eight figures.

A Toorak estate spanning 3200 square meters, with an asking price ranging from $75 million to $82 million, is leading the charge and could potentially surpass the record set by the St Georges Rd "ghost mansion." This mansion was acquired by Australia's youngest billionaire, 28-year-old Edward Craven, for $80,000,088 in 2022.

Craven has embarked on a renovation project expected to last at least three years, with an estimated cost of $145 million, to transform the property into a grand mansion surrounded by extensive garden landscaping and a pool.

This marks a significant transformation of the prestigious address, which had remained vacant for years before the billionaire purchased it and set a new record with his acquisition.

More Here

SQM Research Housing Indexes