Dubbo real estate: Rental vacancy rate hits new low
Workers and families moving to Dubbo are being forced to hire Airbnb properties while they wait for long-term accommodation, as data reveals how and why people are struggling to put a roof over their heads in the regional city.
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Workers moving to Dubbo and families looking to move within the city are battling to secure rental properties as the region’s economy booms and residential vacancy rates hit record lows.
The latest Real Estate Institute of NSW figures show the residential vacancy rate in the Central West region was the lowest in the state in September, at just 0.4 per cent.
Nearby, the Orana region which Dubbo sits in recorded a record low vacancy rate of 0.6 per cent.
In the same month, the survey of REINSW members revealed vacancies in Sydney increased by 0.4 per cent to 4.1 per cent overall.
SMALL BUSINESSES BENEFITING FROM BOOMING DEMAND
REINSW Orana division chairman Adam Wells said the low vacancy rate reflected the strong economic position cities like Dubbo found themselves in, with more tenants leaving metropolitan areas and relocating in regional centres, and a spike in infrastructure spending, creating strong jobs growth.
“That’s just putting a strain on availability because there isn’t the stock,” he said.
“We’ve got a really high demand and really low supplies of properties that are available.”
Mr Wells said to avoid waiting a long time for rental properties, some people had chosen to buy or move into a short-term apartment or Airbnb accommodation.
“Some people are looking at buying, I spoke to one individual in particular who was trying to find rentals but he wasn’t able to do that so he’s had to go into short-term apartment accommodation.
“If people who own are thinking about renting their property out or having an investment property now is a really good time because there is such a low vacancy rate.
“You’re not going to have a vacancy for three to four months, it’s going to be rented straight away. And that’s a really positive thing for our market.”
While the low vacancy rate was frustrating renters, Mr Wells said it was helping to keep the doors to many other small businesses open.
“We’ve got pest and building inspections happening on sale properties, we’ve got solicitors involved in the sale of properties, we’ve got gardeners and landscapers involved in getting properties for lease, maintenance people and the list goes on.
“If the vacancy rate is high there’s potentially not as much stimulus happening in Dubbo so there’s a strain on people if there is that high vacancy rate.”
RENTERS STRESSED BY SHORTFALL
Tory White and her family have experienced the downside that comes with a low vacancy rate.
The Dubbo mum said she needed to move because of change in family circumstances but struggled to find a rental property.
“We were looking for about two months and it was so stressful and frustrating because it just felt like we had no hope,” she said.
“At each inspection there were at least 30 people also looking, it was daunting and we got rejected from every property we looked at even though we have a great rental history.
“I actually met a few people at some inspections who said they had never seen it this bad in all their years of being in Dubbo … they were applying for anything available even if it wasn’t suitable just so they would have a roof over their heads.”
AGENTS CALL FOR MORE LAND RELEASES
Dubbo Real Estate Agency business development manager Tara Searle said in the current climate it was common to see good quality applicants like Ms White be knocked back for rental properties.
“We’ve got over 800 residential properties and we currently have two vacant,” Ms Searle said.
“The Wellington Solar Farm project created a big demand for furnished rental properties.
“All of those short-term rentals which all of your other people would be renting if they couldn’t find anything, have already gone. For people that are starting out it’s really hard.”
Ms Searle believes to increase the number of rental properties, governments need to release more blocks of land with zoning rules that meet the changing needs of renters who might not want big backyards or huge homes.
“There’s been a big push in town for more units and semi-detached duplexes.
“It’s getting better, a lot of people are splitting the back of blocks off at the moment and doing a second dwelling in there.
“We’ve got to get the land released with the right zoning.”
MAYOR WANTS HELP TO FAST-TRACK DEVELOPMENTS
Dubbo Regional Council Mayor Ben Shields agrees more land needs to be released, but he says future developments need to be planned and not rushed because “we don’t want the developments of today to become the slums of the future”.
“We have to be mindful that there are two economies in NSW, the metro economy has flatlined while regional economies such as Dubbo are booming,” he said.
“What we need now is planning assistance from the NSW Government to fast-track housing developments in regional areas.
“Council is doing what it can to address both rental and housing demand in Dubbo through Keswick Estate. The most recent release saw 59 lots sold in a matter of months and well ahead of scheduled … we are now working overtime to prepare another release to cater for the demand.”
Renters worried about how a shortage of vacant properties would impact their hip pocket could rest assured there were rules in place to protect tenants from excessive rent rises, Mr Wells said.
“If it’s a new rental with the demand that is there, there is the opportunity for someone to have to pay a little bit more,” he said.
“Our recommendation is to just stay within the market conditions because at the moment we’re really strong, but you’d hate to be at a point where if it became vacant and you had your rent too high that the property was vacant in six to 12 months.”
Ms Searle said renters looking for new properties could improve their chances of securing a dream home by getting their applications in as soon as possible.
“Submit your application so that we’ve got it there processed and then if properties are popping up at least we’ve got our pile that we can call and say ‘look we’ve got this that’s come up’,” she said.
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