Toowoomba housing crisis: More short-stay properties available than normal rentals as experts diagnose issue

In an indication of Toowoomba’s low housing stocks, there are more properties being listed on Airbnb and Stayz than as traditional rentals. Here’s why:

Kim Daniels shed tears of joy and relief when she got the call on Tuesday she had been accepted for a new rental property, after dozens of inspections and numerous rejections.

“When (ReMax) rang me, I had a few tears,” the Toowoomba nurse said.

“It’s the first time in months that I felt like I didn’t have a plastic bag over my head.”

Ms Daniels is one of the hundreds of residents still struggling to find a place over their heads, as Toowoomba’s rental crisis drags into a third year.

While the city’s vacancy rate has inched up slightly to 0.9 per cent in March – its highest point since December 2020 — that is well below the recommended range of 2-3 per cent.

Toowoomba nurse Kim Daniels is breathing a big sigh of relief after securing a rental property in Wilsonton following a three-month search.

In fact, there are more short-stay rental listings on sites like Airbnb and Stayz (more than 300 across both sites) than available long-term leasable properties on RealEstate.com.au (253), highlighting what some call a serious housing supply issue.

This has not been limited to Toowoomba, with Brisbane experiencing a similar phenomenon that has prompted the city council to start imposing higher rates on Airbnb homeowners.

While real estate experts say there is clear “imbalance” between the two property types, they say policy and legislation shortcomings by both local and state governments are a strain on new housing stocks.

Airbnb itself notes short-stay properties represent just one to two per cent of Australia’s total housing stock, with levels remaining stable over the past few years.

Ms Daniels said whatever the reason, Toowoomba’s rental crisis was having a real impact on the people struggling to find a home.

“I would have an anxiety attack while going to a property viewing, there were more than 20 people waiting outside of the agent,” she said.

“It really affected my mental health, I had to take three weeks off work to focus on this.

“I couldn’t understand why my applications were just sitting there, I had no feedback — I had to ring to find out.”

REIQ’s Daniel Burrett.

Toowoomba zone chair for the Real Estate Institute of Queensland Daniel Burrett said while there was a need for reforms around Airbnbs and other short-stay formats, the true factor guiding the city’s situation was a lack of supply.

“I would suggest that we currently are not incentivising people to keep their properties as long-term investments,” he said.

“There are more regulations for landlords and more boundaries put in place, right through to limiting the rental increases.

“Absolutely (there is an imbalance), and I think the REIQ’s position is the government is not looking at the problem, and the problem is (land) supply.

“The better thing is incentivise more mums and dads to go out and purchase an investment property (or) create new housing stock.

“More dwellings is the answer — we’ve had a lot of investors selling up in the past 12 months.”

Council called on to reform short stay registration

Mr Burrett, who is the principal of Re/Max Toowoomba and also an Airbnb property manager and owner, said there was a clear need for short-stay options.

“There is always going to be a need, because there are few serviced apartments in Toowoomba,” he said.

“The Airbnb space offers more than a single bedroom but a house.

“If you are coming up to a wedding with eight people, you could book three or four hotel rooms as opposed to one Airbnb.”

On the other end, Mr Burrett said the Toowoomba Regional Council could improve the level of reporting around homes being used for Airbnbs by streamlining the registration process.

“The Toowoomba Regional Council’s town plan is 12 years old and it predates Airbnb — the issue is they don’t have a category in their town plan for them, so Airbnbs fall into the hotel category, which is very costly (to apply for),” he said.

Mr Burrett also said he wouldn’t have a problem with the council rating Airbnb and Stayz properties differently in the future.

The council was contacted for comment on the issue.

Councillor Megan O’Hara Sullivan previously said she’d be open to looking at higher rates for short-stay homes in the future.

Airbnb weighs in on housing shortage

Airbnb’s head of public policy for Australia and New Zealand Michael Crosby said it supported the Queensland government’s approach to the housing issue.

“Housing affordability is a challenging and complicated issue not just for people and communities, but also governments genuinely looking to tackle this policy challenge,” he said in a statement.

“We want to acknowledge and thank the Queensland Government for taking an evidence-driven approach by conducting this research prior to formulating a regulatory response.

“While short term rentals generally comprise a tiny proportion of the overall property market, we’re keen to keep finding ways that we can make a positive contribution to this important issue.

“Late last year, Airbnb proposed a series of measures that will help build stronger communities, foster sustainable tourism growth, and equip governments across Australia with tools to help address important issues, such as housing affordability and amenity.”