Video shows want-to-be city renters still struggling

Footage of a large queue of hopeful house hunters waiting to inspect a one bedroom apartment in Melbourne has emerged, sparking outrage.

Footage of a large queue of hopeful house hunters waiting to inspect a one bedroom apartment in Melbourne has emerged showing the rental crisis is continuing.

The clip, which was captured during an inspection on the weekend, shows a queue of about 30 people lining up down a street in the inner-city suburb of Burnley.

The same sight isn’t uncommon in the nation’s capitals; similar scenes have been spotted in Sydney and Perth, with data from Domain showing Australia’s total vacancy rate for February at a record-low 0.8 per cent.

About 30 people are queuing to view a one bedroom property for rent in Melbourne's inner-city at the weekend.

“Not even the entire queue for a 1 BR in Burnley,” writes the user who posted the video to Reddit, “half already went and some were still pulling up.”

Domain’s February vacancy rate report also found unit rent in Melbourne increased 23.1 per cent year-on-year in the March quarter.

Domain’s Chief of Research and Economics, Dr Nicola Powell, said part of the problem is the sheer volume of Chinese students returning to Australia to study following the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The proportion of overseas migrant arrivals that were temporary visa holders is now sitting at 61 per cent,” said Dr Powell, “a substantial driver of rental demand.

Not even the entire queue for a 1 BR in Burnley, half already went and some were still pulling up
by u/pandyxxx in melbourne

“The impact of migration was further highlighted following the announcement from China’s Ministry of Education to stop acknowledging degrees gained online in January.

“This saw the number of rental searches on Domain from China jump 124% over the March quarter compared to last year.

“With more demand for rentals and not enough supply, renters will continue to face limited choices and tough competition, particularly for cities that traditionally see a higher intake of residents from overseas like Sydney and Melbourne.”

Queensland’s Real Estate Institute (REIQ) on Wednesday called for the state government to rescind the additional nine per cent in taxes, on top of stamp duty, applied to foreign investors as a way of easing the rental crisis.

REIQ CEO Antonia Mercorella said the additional taxes act as a deterrent for capital to be deployed in Queensland.

“With about 36 per cent of people in Queensland living in rental accommodation, the supply of rental properties is crucial,” she said.

“And therefore we need investors – both local and foreign – to make important contributions to the stability of the rental market.”

A TikTok video from Perth in February showed the problem isn’t just being felt in Victoria.

The video showed a queue of about 100 people snaking down Bentley’s Davies Lane as prospective renters waited to view a property, in a similar manner to those in the Melbourne Reddit video.

And a Reddit post from Sydney in July shows a crowd of about 20 people crowding a rental agent outside the World Tower building, all vying for the same listing.

Originally published as Video shows want-to-be city renters still struggling