Queensland Premier Steven Miles to reconsider rent caps ahead of state election
Steven Miles may consider taking a rental cap policy to the Queensland election next month in an attempt to fend off the threat from the Greens in urban electorates.
Steven Miles has left the door open to introducing new caps on rental price increases in Queensland as his Labor government fends off challenges from the Greens in crucial inner-city seats at next month’s state election.
The Queensland Premier refused to be drawn on a formal policy proposal that was commissioned by his government to tie rental increases to inflation.
“I’m not going to get into the business of ruling things in or out because I intend to have lots to say between now and the election,” Mr Miles said.
The ACT is the only Australian jurisdiction with rental caps limited to 10 per cent above the consumer price index.
Queensland Treasury has done no modelling on rental caps in the past 12 months, but senior government sources have confirmed a policy proposal was “floating around”.
Former premier Annastacia Palaszczuk faced backlash from economists and industry bodies after announcing last year that her government was “seriously considering” putting a cap on rapidly rising rental costs throughout the state.
She immediately ruled out a freeze locking in rents for a fixed period, instead limiting increases to once per year.
Mr Miles on Thursday dodged numerous questions about how seriously his government was considering rent caps, instead pointing to his Homes for Queenslanders Plan released in February which doubled the first-home buyers grant and abolished stamp duty on homes up to $700,000.
The Greens, which have set a target of winning eight new seats at the October election, were quick to seize on Mr Miles’ comments, with housing spokeswoman Amy MacMahon saying rents should be frozen for two years, and increases limited to 1 per cent each year after that.
“I think the fact that Labor are considering capping rent increases just shows how scared they are of losing seats to the Greens … in areas where we have high proportions of renters who are struggling over a housing crisis,” she said.
“This is really a last-ditch attempt to save MPs and stop the Greens winning in seats like Cooper, McConnell, Greenslopes and Miller.”
A Labor-dominated committee examining proposed rental freeze laws put forward by the Greens in 2022 found rental controls were “not effective in improving housing affordability for renters and can lead to distortions in the market”.
The Greens have pledged to use any balance of power in a minority government to negotiate stronger rights for renters.
The rental vacancy rate in Queensland increased marginally to 1.2 per cent through the June quarter, with the average rent being $620 a week.
Over the past year, rents increased by 8.8 per cent in Brisbane and 10.7 per cent in regional Queensland.
Despite the strong rise, PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty said conditions in the rental market had began to ease due to a recent rise in investor purchases, which had added to the supply of available rental homes.
Property agency Place’s chief executive, Damian Hackett, said investor costs – including purchase price, insurance, maintenance and taxes – had skyrocketed alongside rental costs.
“They are looking for an easy out to try and relieve a problem, which is more structural,” Mr Hackett said.