Tenant hotspots: WA’s 10 top searched suburbs for rentals revealed

reiwa.com’s latest search result data has revealed the 10 suburbs and regional towns most popular with West Australian tenants looking for a rental home over the last 12 months.

REIWA President Damian Collins said the list was quite diverse, as it featured seven suburbs from within the Perth region and three regional towns.

“The list is also quite varied in terms of population. While we would expect to see suburbs with larger numbers of properties in areas like Baldivis and Canning Vale return high search volumes, a number of the suburbs on the list that ranked well have fewer than 10,000 people residing in the area.

“Of course, areas like Mandurah, Geraldton, Bunbury and Kalgoorlie also represent a broader urban area which has likely contributed to their popularity with WA tenants.

“Overall, the suburbs south of Perth proved most popular with WA tenants, with Mandurah, Rockingham and Baldivis ranking first, second and third respectively for searches. Geraldton and Bunbury in regional WA followed closely, rounding out the top five,” Mr Collins said.

Joondalup, Scarborough, Kalgoorlie, Ellenbrook and Canning Vale completed the list.

reiwa.com data shows nine of the 10 suburbs on the list experienced declines to the number of properties available for rent in their respective areas over the last year, with Mandurah, Canning Vale and Bunbury recording the most significant reductions.

“When there is increased interest in a suburb and fewer rentals available, this leads to stronger competition between tenants. While overall rent prices in Perth have been stable for a while now, there are some pockets that are starting to see prices rise,” Mr Collins said.

“From the list, Baldivis, Geraldton, Scarborough and Canning Vale all experienced increases in median rent over the last year, with their individual rent prices lifting by $10, $5, $18 and $10 respectively.

Landlords also found it quicker to find tenants in these areas, with reiwa.com data showing nine of the 10 suburbs saw their average leasing times improve during the last year.

“Canning Vale (39 days) and Joondalup (45 days) had the most notable decline in leasing times, with each experiencing a reduction of 11 days during the year, followed by Baldivis (41 days), Geraldton (57 days) and Scarborough (39 days), which reduced by 10 days each. Bunbury was the only area on the list to not record an improvement in average leasing time,” Mr Collins said.

“These 10 areas clearly hold a lot of appeal for West Aussie tenants. If you’re an investor looking to buy, I’d recommend speaking to a real estate agent about how these local markets are performing and what investment opportunities are available.”

_{*reiwa.com search data is from 1 March 2018 till 28 February 2019. ** Median rent and average leasing data is for the year to February 2019. ***Population data is from the 2016 Census.}  

Source: reiwa.com.au