Vacancy rates have further deteriorated across much of Australia, with just three cities recording a slight uptick in listings.

The latest PropTrack Market Insight Report has revealed that the national vacancy rate fell for the third consecutive month in September, dropping 0.06 percentage points to just 1.34 per cent.

There are now 46 per cent fewer rental vacancies nationally than there were in March 2020.

The only places to record an increase in listings were Melbourne (+0.01%), Adelaide (+0.02%) and Darwin (+0.29%).

Hobart saw the sharpest drop in vacancies, falling by 0.26 percentage points to reach 0.63 per cent – the lowest vacancy of any market.

Hobart experienced the biggest decline in rental vacancies in September. Picture: Supplied

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Canberra recorded the second largest drop across the capitals in September, down 0.15 percentage points to 1.74 per cent, while Perth and Brisbane saw falls of 0.10 and 0.06 percentage points respectively.

Sydney’s vacancy rate fell to 1.56 per cent after a decrease of 0.08 per cent in September.

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A terrace home in Walsh Bay in Sydney is listed for $3650 a week

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Regional markets across every state and territory also declined by between 0.02 (regional Victoria) and 0.21 (regional Tasmania).

The national capital city vacancy rate is now 1.43 per cent, while the combined regions is 1.12 per cent.

PropTrack Market Insight Report – September 2024

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“The easing in rental conditions seen over the first half of the year appears to have come to an end, with the proportion of rental properties sitting vacant trending lower since July,” REA Group senior economist Anne Flaherty said.

“Despite the decline seen in September, vacancies are still higher in most capital cities

compared to a year ago, with the combined rate up 0.22 percentage points year-on-year.

“In contrast, regional markets have persistently seen vacancies fall, with the combined regional vacancy rate sitting 0.09 percentage points lower than 12 months ago.

“The gap between capital city and regional vacancy rates has consistently widened over the

past five months, with regional vacancy now sitting 0.31 percentage points below capital city levels.

“Compared to March 2020, there were 46 per cent fewer rental properties sitting vacant in September.”

The PropTrack research shows that the top four tighest SA4 rental markets in September were all in the regions – North West (0.53%) and Warrnambool and South West (0.57%), both in regional Victoria, Barossa-Yorke-Mid North (0.59%) in South Australia and Bunbury in Western Australia (0.6%).

Moreton Bay South in Brisbane and Hobart were the tightest capital city markets with vacancy rateS of just 0.63 per cent.

Realestate.com.au economist Anne Flaherty

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The PropTrack report comes after SQM Research revealed that a further 1733 rental properties disappeared from Australia’s rental market in September.

In its National Vacancy Rates report, it was revealed that the total number of rental vacancies now stands at 37,932 residential properties, a decrease from 39,665 in August.

“Perth, Canberra, and Hobart plus regional Australia were the main drivers to the decline,” that report said.

“While all other capital cities were steady or recorded slight rises.”

The research showed there were just 215 rental vacancies in Hobart in September, 267 in Darwin and 1002 in Adelaide.

Perth had 1119, Canberra had 1198, Brisbane had 3737, Melbourne 8796 and Sydney had 11,360.

“Over the past month leading up to 12th October 2024, rental prices in capital city asking rents exhibited mixed trends,” the report revealed.

“Total capital city advertised rents rose by 0.5 per cent. Sydney experienced a 0.9 per cent increase in combined rents, reflectinga turnaround from a fall in rents over winter.

“Conversely, Melbourne recorded a 1.1 per cent decline, indicating a softening in rental demand.”

In Brisbane, combined rents rose by 1.5 per cent, while Perth also exhibited growth with a 1.7 per cent rise.

This Wavell Heights house is listed for $595 a week in Brisbane

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“Meanwhile, Adelaide encountered a decrease of 0.2 per cent, signalling a slight downturn in rental prices,” the report noted.

“Canberra experienced a significant drop of 3.4 per cent in housing rents, highlighting a notable shift in demand.

“Hobart’s combined rents increased modestly by 0.3 per cent, continuing a stable trend.

“In contrast, Darwin faced a substantial decrease of 4.5 per cent, pointing to a marked decline in rental demand.

“On a national level including all regions, median advertised rents recorded an increase of 0.8 per cent, suggesting some tightening in rental conditions in regional Australia.”

A recent report by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Unit (AHURI) revealed that homelessness had increased in areas with greater shortages of affordable private rental housing.

“The research estimated that around 158,000 one to two-bedroom dwellings and 25,000 three-or-more-bedroom dwellings are needed nationally,” the report said.

“These dwellings must be affordable and available to households with the lowest incomes.”

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NATION’S TOP 20 TIGHTEST RENTAL MARKETS – SA4

North West VIC 0.53

Warrnambool and South West VIC 0.57

Barossa-Yorke- Mid North SA 0.59

Bunbury WA 0.6

Moreton Bay South QLD 0.63

Hobart TAS 0.63

Wheat Belt WA0.66

South East SA 0.67

Toowoomba QLD 0.69

Hume VIC 0.72

Darling Downs Maranoa QLD 0.72

Melbourne Outer East VIC 0.75

Coffs Harbour-Grafton NSW 0.76

Adelaide South SA 0.76

Launceston and North East TAS 0.79

Richmond-Tweed NSW 0.8

Sunshine Coast QLD 0.8

Adelaide West SA 0.83

Sydney Northern Beaches NSW 0.84

Sydney Sutherland NSW 0.87

(Source: PropTrack)

NATION’S TOP 20 HEALTHIEST RENTAL MARKETS – SA4

Western Australia Outback (North) WA 3.72

South Australia Outback SA 2.67

Mackay-Isaac-Whitsunday QLD 2.35

Melbourne West VIC 2.17

Melbourne Inner VIC 2.15

Baulkham Hills and Hawkesbury NSW 2.07

Capital Region NSW 2

Mandurah WA 2

Sydney City and Inner South NSW 1.97

Sydney Ryde NSW 1.88

North Sydney and Hornsby NSW 1.87

South East TAS 1.78

Queensland Outback QLD 1.76

Sydney Inner West NSW 1.75

Melbourne Inner East VIC 1.75

Australian Capital Territory ACT 1.74

Sydney Parramatta NSW 1.7

Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven NSW 1.67

Sydney Blacktown NSW 1.63

Central Queensland QLD 1.61