Sydney rents plunge as fed-up residents move out to escape the overcrowded city and the soaring costs of living
- Sydney house rents plunged by 4.5 per cent to $676 a week during the past year
- Brisbane’s equivalent lease surged by an annual pace of 3.5 per cent to $466
- SQM Research chief Louis Christopher said Sydney rents were set to keep falling
Renting has become a lot cheaper in Australia’s biggest city as fed-up residents move to escape high costs of living.
House and apartment rents have plunged in Sydney during the past year as leasing costs rose in every other state capital, new SQM Research data showed.
Sydneysiders fed-up with crowded trains and expensive accommodation costs are moving out.
House and apartment rents have plunged in Sydney during the past year as leasing costs rose in every other state capital, new SQM Research data showed. Sydneysiders fed-up with crowded trains (Town Hall station pictured) are moving out
SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said the exodus of renters from Sydney was pushing up prices in Brisbane.
‘There has been a move from Sydney to Brisbane,’ he told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday.
‘It’s all because Brisbane had a standard of living benefit through the move and that’s been playing out a little bit in the Brisbane rental market.’
To put that into perspective, renting a house in Sydney costs $676 a week while Brisbane’s equivalent median lease is $466.
This has seen tenants vote with their wallets, causing Sydney’s house rents to plunge by 4.5 per cent during the past year as leases for a home with a backyard in Brisbane have soared by 3.5 per cent.
Mr Christopher said Sydney tenants were likely to get an even better deal during the next year as the city’s rental vacancy surged to a new record-high of four per cent.
‘We’re going to see a decrease in rent in the immediate future – we are expecting rents to keep falling in Sydney for the next six months,’ he said.
The release of new housing land in Sydney’s north-west has boosted the supply of accommodation for tenants, and seen the city’s rental vacancy rate surge from 2.8 per cent to 3.4 per cent in the year to August.
SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said the exodus of renters from Sydney was pushing up prices in Brisbane (pictured is a CityCat ferry passing the Go Between Bridge)
Unlike Sydney, Melbourne has managed to keep more of its residents, with a rental vacancy rate of just two per cent.
‘Melbourne’s experiencing the strongest population expansion compared to all other cities,’ Mr Christopher said.
This has seen apartment rents in the Victorian capital rise by 2.2 per cent during the past year to $418 a week.
Leasing a house, however, has become cheaper with weekly rents falling by 0.4 per cent to $524.70.
Hobart posted the steepest rental increases, with unit leases surging by 10.3 per cent to $412.30 a week.
It has Australia’s lowest vacancy rate of 0.6 per cent.
Unlike Sydney, Melbourne has managed to keep more of its residents, with a rental vacancy rate of just two per cent