House and unit rents in Brisbane remained steady over the March quarter, according to the Domain Group Rental Report*.
At $400 per week for houses and $370 per week for units, growth of median asking rents in Brisbane was flat over the three months to March as well as the previous 12 months.
Dr Andrew Wilson, Senior Economist, Domain Group, said, “While in most capital cities asking rents were steady over the March quarter, vacancy rates are still relatively tight and asking rents in a number of capital cities, including Brisbane, remain at record levels.”
According to Domain Group, the March national capital city vacancy rate was 2.0 percent for houses and 2.6 percent for units, contributing to an overall dwelling vacancy rate of 2.2 percent. Vacancy rates in Brisbane were 2.3 percent for houses and 3.0 percent for units in March.
Nationally, median weekly asking rents for houses increased by 0.8 percent over the March quarter while unit rents rose by 0.4 percent.
Rental markets were steady or declining in most capital cities with the exception of Melbourne and Hobart which both saw solid increases over the quarter.
Hobart recorded the strongest increase in asking rents for both houses and units, which rose by 3.1 percent and 3.7 percent respectively.
Melbourne was the only other capital city to record increases in the median weekly asking rents over the quarter. Unit rents rose by 1.4 percent to $365, house rents by 2.5 percent to $390, both new records.
Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Canberra house and unit asking rents remained steady during the period, while Darwin house rents decreased by 1.9 percent and unit rents dropped by 3.7 percent. In Perth, house rents were again flat while unit rents fell by 1.3 percent.
“With the exception of Perth and Darwin, upward pressure on rents is set to continue through 2015 in most capitals,” said Dr Wilson. “The prospect of lower interest rates, relatively high comparative yields and capital growth will continue to fuel investor activity, particularly in Sydney where rents remain at record levels.”
* Report previously known as the APM Rental Price Series Quarterly Report. For more information go to http://domain.com.au/groupdata