12 December 2020

You may have heard that
the rental market across Western Australia has been under pressure due to the
lack of supply in recent months.
In November this was no
different, with reiwa.com data revealing there were only 2,889 properties
available for rent on reiwa.com which is 52 per cent less than November 2019 -
making it the third consecutive month in a row in which listings were under
3,000.
Due to the limited
number of rentals available it has created upward pressure on rents and in
November the Perth median weekly rent price increased $10 to $390 per week.
Breaking it down into houses and units, the median house price is $400 per week
and the median unit price is $360 per week.
Over the last few years,
until recently the overall median weekly rent has remained stable and Perth has
been the most affordable capital city to rent in across the nation for over
three years now.
Housing Affordability Report
According to the Real
Estate Institute of Australia’s Housing Affordability Report (September
2020 quarter), WA still retains the title for
the most affordable with the proportion of family income required to meet the
median rent sitting at 17 per cent.
While this has slightly
increased by 0.9 per cent when compared to the June 2020 quarter, WA is still
performing quite well compared to the other states, with the Australian Capital
Territory the second most affordable at 19.1 per cent.
Compared to our East
Coast counterparts, WA is substantially below, with Victoria decreasing 0.1 per
cent over the quarter to 22.4 per cent, Queensland increased 0.1 per cent to
21.6 per cent and New South Wales increased 0.9 per cent to 28.4 per cent.
What we could expect in 2021
Looking ahead, we can
expect rents to increase throughout 2021 due to supply and demand factors,
however we anticipate they will still not be at the same levels they were
during the boom (over $450 per week) and it is likely not reach a percentage as
high as some of the East Coast states and territories.
If you are renting or a
property owner and have a question about rents in WA, make sure to reach out to
your REIWA property manager for more information.