Northern Territory rental markets remains tight

The latest PropTrack Market Insight Report showed the Darwin rental vacancy rate dipped 0.11 percentage points in August to sit at 0.93 per cent, making the NT capital the second tightest rental market in the country.

PropTrack senior economist, Anne Flaherty said the vacancy rate in Darwin was also down 0.95 percentage points compared to August 2023.

“Darwin recorded a 0.64 percentage point drop in available rentals over the quarter, the greatest decline of all markets,” she said.

Elders Darwin senior residential property manager, Michelle Carrington said the Darwin rental market was unusually tight for this time of the year.

“Normally we see less demand and properties more readily available coming towards the end of the dry season,” she said.

“But rental rates are remaining strong and renters are finding it difficult to secure a property.

This 4-bedroom apartment on Myilly Terrace in Cullen Bay is available from December with a rental price of $1,800 a week. Picture: realestate.com.au/rent

“Demand remains about the same but there’s definitely lower levels of stock on the market.”

Ms Carrington said it was hard to pinpoint exactly what was behind the low stock numbers, but a number of factors were likely at play.

“Airbnbs usually come back on to the private market at end of dry season, which we haven’t seen as yet,” she said.

Regional NT had the largest annual decline in vacancy rate in the country with Darwin coming in second.

“The number of available rentals in Darwin and regional NT has plummeted since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, (down 81 per cent and 73 per cent respectively),” Ms Flaherty said.

The home at 14 Conigrave St, Fannie Bay, is for rent for $1100 per week. Picture: realestate.com.au

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Nationally, the vacancy rate was sitting at 1.39 per cent after a 0.04 percentage point drop in August.

However, the number of homes available to rent across the country was up 0.05 percentage points across the quarter and 0.13 percentage points year-on-year.

“Regional markets were the primary driver of the drop in vacancy seen over August, with Australia’s combined regional areas shedding 0.1 percentage points to reach 1.19 per cent,” Ms Flaherty said.

“In contrast, vacancy across the combined capital cities held relatively steady over the month, dipping by just 0.01 percentage points.”

“Though capital city vacancy was steady overall, there were significant differences by state, with Melbourne and Brisbane recording a rise, while Perth, Hobart, Darwin and the ACT all recorded declines of 0.1 percentage points or more.

“Conditions remain extremely challenging for renters, with vacancy at sub-2 per cent levels in every market.”

“We’ve had a lot of legislation changes of late, which are not as enticing for landlords, so perhaps more landlords are selling up.

“Also, we’re potentially starting to see an influx of defence personnel, who are moving up.

“We have had defence personnel enquiring about properties recently, which is unusual for this time of the year.”

Ms Carrington predicted the rental market would remain steady over the coming months.

In regional NT, the vacancy rate dropped 0.56 percentage points in August to 1 per cent, and was also down 0.45 percentage points for the quarter and 1.04 percentage points for the year.