Invest
Rental prices see smallest rise in 25 years
New data has found that over the past year rents have had the smallest increase since 1993.
Rental prices see smallest rise in 25 years
New data has found that over the past year rents have had the smallest increase since 1993.
According to the figures released by the ABS, over the year to September 2018 rents increased by just 0.6 per cent on average, the slowest rise in 25 years.
Significant variation was found between Australia’s eight capital cities, however, with Hobart seeing the largest increase of 4.5 per cent. Rents also rose in Canberra (3.0 per cent), Sydney (1.9 per cent), Melbourne (1.8 per cent) and Adelaide (0.8 per cent) over the 12 months.
In comparison, Perth rental prices declined substantially (6.1 per cent) over the same period, together with Darwin (4.6 per cent) and Brisbane (0.1 per cent).
“For the 30 per cent of Australian families who rent their homes, the near absence of rental price rises is of course welcome,” said Shane Garrett, chief economist of Master Builders Australia.
“The environment of very low and stable interest rates has made it less costly for investors to provide accommodation to the rental market.”
Mr Garrett said he feared investors would be unable to continue to provide such housing should Labor’s proposed changes to negative gearing and the capital gains tax come into effect following the next election.
“Current arrangements around negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount are crucial to ensuring that a large enough supply of rental accommodation makes it onto the market from year to year. Introducing any restrictions here could cause shortages of rental accommodation to develop,” Mr Garrett said.
His concerns echo those of Malcolm Gunning, president of the Real Estate Institute of Australia, who last month said negative gearing was vital to ensuring investors maintain capital growth and are able to hold properties for longer periods, safeguarding stability in the rental market.
Mr Gunning emphasised that the removal of negative gearing could inspire investors to exit the market, which would drive property prices up and make issues of affordability in Australia’s more popular markets worse.
“If you take the investor out, it's going to be difficult for young people or for people who only want to rent to be able to do that.”
Mr Gunning's statement comes after data provided by ING to Fairfax Media in April this year revealed the typical first-time home buyer age had risen to 31 years old, from 29 in the early 2000s. The figures, based on ING’s own lending records and broader industry data, indicated issues to financing, including lenders requiring larger deposits in the last few years, as keeping younger Australians out of the market.
Such anxieties in the industry have been sparked by Labor’s proposed policy changes, which would see negative gearing limited to newly built properties and the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount halved should the ALP be successful in the next election.
Property
First home buyers at the frontline of Frydenberg’s charm offensive
There are few surprises to be found in this year’s federal budget, with Australian property investors and first home buyers set to benefit from new and expanded measures. ...Read more
Property
May could be the beginning of the end for housing pricing boom
Experts have suggested that recent growth in prices could mark the peak of the pandemic bounceback for the housing market. ...Read more
Property
Treasurer announces home loan assistance packages for single parents
The federal government has announced a new scheme targeted at helping single parents with limited deposits into the housing market. ...Read more
Property
Australian housing market now valued at $8 trillion
The Australian dwelling market has reached a new record high, with the total value of residential real estate breaking the $8 trillion mark for the first time. ...Read more
Property
A generation of Aussies could be locked out of the housing market as prices boom
A booming property market is set to see a generation of younger Australians priced out of the market, a shadow assistant minister has said, challenging the narrative that younger people are failing...Read more
Property
Is the property market reaching its summit?
While home values continued to rise across the country in April, current trends are pointing to the possibility that the property market has peaked, a new report has revealed. ...Read more
Property
Wait, so it’s definitely cheaper to rent than buy?
New research has revealed that there are indeed dwellings in Australia that are cheaper to buy than rent (57 per cent to be exact), but where are these dwellings located and are they liveable? ...Read more
Property
‘List your homes before the good times run out’
Aussies who had planned to sell their house prior to the pandemic are being urged to realise those plans now, with buyers said to be immensely hungry for housing. ...Read more
Has the property market reached its peak; Biden’s climate summit and our sharemarket, and the upcoming budget
Listen now
Is the market overheating; should ETFs take your fancy, and what’s happening to the low and middle income tax offset?
Listen now
Home values up 30% (or are they); NFTs taking the world by storm, and why Keating thinks Aussies will be ‘poor’ in retirement
Listen now
Raging floods, the tech stock bubble and the ongoing SG debate
Listen now
Property
First home buyers at the frontline of Frydenberg’s charm offensive
There are few surprises to be found in this year’s federal budget, with Australian property investors and first home buyers set to benefit from new and expanded measures. ...Read more
Property
May could be the beginning of the end for housing pricing boom
Experts have suggested that recent growth in prices could mark the peak of the pandemic bounceback for the housing market. ...Read more
Property
Treasurer announces home loan assistance packages for single parents
The federal government has announced a new scheme targeted at helping single parents with limited deposits into the housing market. ...Read more
Property
Australian housing market now valued at $8 trillion
The Australian dwelling market has reached a new record high, with the total value of residential real estate breaking the $8 trillion mark for the first time. ...Read more
Property
A generation of Aussies could be locked out of the housing market as prices boom
A booming property market is set to see a generation of younger Australians priced out of the market, a shadow assistant minister has said, challenging the narrative that younger people are failing...Read more
Property
Is the property market reaching its summit?
While home values continued to rise across the country in April, current trends are pointing to the possibility that the property market has peaked, a new report has revealed. ...Read more
Property
Wait, so it’s definitely cheaper to rent than buy?
New research has revealed that there are indeed dwellings in Australia that are cheaper to buy than rent (57 per cent to be exact), but where are these dwellings located and are they liveable? ...Read more
Property
‘List your homes before the good times run out’
Aussies who had planned to sell their house prior to the pandemic are being urged to realise those plans now, with buyers said to be immensely hungry for housing. ...Read more
More articles
Website Notifications
Get notifications in real-time for staying up to date with content that matters to you.
