Qld regions see biggest rent rise in Aus, set to overtake Brisbane
Shocking new figures show renters in Queensland’s regions copped the biggest rises in the country in 2024, with weekly rents on track to overtake Brisbane.
Shocking new figures show renters in Queensland’s regions copped the biggest rises in the country in 2024, with weekly rents on track to overtake Brisbane where prices slowed dramatically.
The latest REA Group Rental Report December 2024, released Thursday, found conditions have eased significantly for Brisbane renters in the past year – with prices rising 5 per cent compared to 9.1 per cent in 2023 and over 20 per cent in 2022.
But renters in Queensland’s regions may be in for some continued tough times with REA group executive manager economic, Angus Moore, finding prices there grew at the fastest pace in the country of all capitals and regions – rising 8.6 per cent.
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He warned that while both Brisbane and the Queensland regions had a median weekly rent of $630 in the December quarter, at the current pace “the regions could soon overtake the capital” - and both are seeing rents rise faster than inflation.
Of the capital cities, Brisbane was one of just two that have seen a rent increase since September 2024 – the other being Canberra – but the past year had “signalled a departure from the rapid rent growth and limited availability that has defined recent years”.
“While still a rapid pace of growth, it is the slowest annual growth in rents in Brisbane since early 2021.”
In regional Queensland, Mr Moore said, availability of rental property was “very limited” with total listings 39.4 per cent lower than the decade average to the end of 2022.
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Ray White Collective CEO Haesley Cush – who has agencies five major Brisbane inner-city zones and a large rent roll via his Living Here Cush Partners property management business – said the “fever pitch search for property” which created massive rent rises throughout the pandemic had now eased.
“There is still a lot of inquiry for property, but the pricing has now started to hit the affordability ceiling and that’s what’s tempering it a little bit,” he said.
“Also, the government intervention. Previously if a tenant wanted to offer more than the advertised rent, like in any open market, they could; whereas now they can’t.”
“They put a ceiling on that saying the owner can choose the price they want, but if a tenant wants to offer more, they can’t accept it. They want to make a fairer field for tenants so that could be playing a role (in lower increases).”
Mr Cush said “owners don’t just jack their prices up by 9 per cent for no reason. It’s tenants that force prices up... That high octane desperation is now pulled out.”
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Mr Cush said “the sub-$700 a week rental market, which used to be sub-$500 a week, is still highly competitive, but it always is at this time of year as people move for work and school.”
“This is like service in the busiest kitchen on the busiest night of the year, all hands on the pump,” Mr Cush said of the January rental market.
The PropTrack figures showed rental demand eased over the year to December in regional Queensland with a 12.8 per cent decrease in average enquiries per listing, while the median time a rental spent advertised on realestate.com.au remained unchanged at 17 days.
Total listings were up just 1.8 per cent in the regions over the year to December, despite new rental listings dropping slightly by -0.2 per cent.
Brisbane saw the number of properties available to rent increase year-on-year in December, with new listings up 7.3 per cent and the total rising 4.4 per cent.
Brisbane rental supply is still “historically low” Mr Moore said with total listings 29.4 per cent below the decade average to December 2022, while demand is up slightly with average enquiries per listing rising 0.5 per cent annually.
Brisbane rental properties are generally snapped up within 18 days of being on realestate.com.au, a figures unchanged from a year before - and one day longer than Queensland’s regions.
Originally published as Qld regions see biggest rent rise in Aus, set to overtake Brisbane