Rent.com.au Monthly Market Report for March 2020

Report Highlights

• Not one metro area saw an increase in rent in March – with falls across most states and territories.
  The most significant change was seen in Darwin apartments, where rents fell 8.3% to $330/week.
• Perth is still the cheapest place in Australia to rent an individual room in a house at $120/week,
  despite an 2.8% increase year-on-year.
• Considering the average time to lease a property, apartments in Hobart slowed most significantly
  of all state and territory capitals, taking 15 days, a 15% slowdown month-on-month.
• Darwin (-8.3%), Perth (-2.9%) and Canberra (-2.6%) were key contributors to the national fall in
  apartment median rent in March.

Days on Market

Sydney houses saw the most significant improvement in time on market in March; taking 25 days to shift
on average (8% faster, month-on-month). Apartments in the NSW capital were also off market 5% faster in
March – now also 25 days. For houses, the most noticeable shift month-on-month was in Hobart – this
property type came off market 15% faster in March, an average of 15 days to move.

Rent.com.au’s latest report recorded a general decrease in the time apartments and houses stayed on
market in March. The market moved far quicker for houses overall (quickest in Sydney, Brisbane and
Darwin), with properties leasing faster in all states and territories except Perth, which remained
unchanged.

Perth Market

Considering rent.com.au’s room price metric, Perth remained the cheapest place in Australia to rent an
individual room in a house at $120/week, despite an 2.8% increase year-on-year.

The 12-month change in price per room showed Adelaide to have the biggest jump in apartment roomprices, up 10.5% to $170/week.

Rent.com.au chief executive officer, Greg Bader said with most reported property data developed for the
property owner (i.e. dwelling price), it was important to have an individual measurement that looked at a
room price breakdown.

“Our price per room metric is a different way to look at the cost of renting,” he said. “It’s a more accurate
representation for people wanting to share a home with others.”

SOURCE: www.rent.com.au