Positive signs for vacancy rates in major metropolitan areas

16 February 2022 

The REINSW Vacancy Rate Survey results for January 2022 show that residential rental vacancies have dropped across the major metropolitan areas of Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong.

“What a difference a month makes,” REINSW CEO Tim McKibbin said. “Sydneysiders – and indeed people across New South Wales – are coming out of hibernation. While there has been an exodus from metropolitan areas in recent months, it looks like the tide is starting to turn.

“The vacancy rate in Sydney overall fell by 0.3% to be 2.5% in January. The Inner and Outer Rings of Sydney also fell by 0.3% to be 3.4% and 1.5% respectively. The Middle Ring remained stable at 2.9%.”

Outside Sydney, vacancy rates tightened, dropping to 1.8% (-0.3%) in Newcastle and 0.4% (-0.4%) in Wollongong.

Vacancy rates across regional New South Wales continue to remain low, recording only small movements.

“Rates in the Mid-North Coast, Murrumbidgee, Orana, Riverina, South Coast and South Eastern areas all experienced a slight uptick in the availability of rental accommodation in January 2022, while the Coffs Harbour, New England and Northern Rivers areas saw decreases,” Mr McKibbin said. “The Albury, Central Coast and Central West areas remained unchanged.”

“The hesitancy we saw in the market leading into the festive season due to the Omicron variant seems to be dissipating and people are returning to metropolitan areas. And, as we would expect, the pre-Christmas market lull is reversing, as people make decisions about their work and living plans for the coming year.

“This all bodes well for the residential rental market going forward.”

The REINSW Residential Vacancy Rate Report is based on the proportion of unlet residential dwellings to the total rent roll of REINSW member agents on the 15th of each month. Carried out monthly, the research – a survey of REINSW member agents conducted by Survey Matters – collects the total properties on agency rent rolls, the number of properties that were vacant on the 15th of the month, and the postcode in which a majority of agents’ rental properties are located. The suburb-level rates reported by agents are weighted based on ABS Census 2016 Dwelling Characteristics. The December 2021 report is based on survey responses covering 95,330 residential rental properties.

To download the Media Release Click Here       .

To view the December Survey Results Click Here.

For more information, please contact:
Media Officer | 0423 724080 | [email protected]

About REINSW
The Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW) is the peak industry body for real estate and property professionals in NSW. It represents more than 2000 agencies across residential sales, property management, commercial, strata management, buyers’ agency, agency services and auctioneering. Established in 1910, REINSW works to improve the standards, professionalism and expertise of its members to continually evolve and innovate the industry. It lobbies the government and industry on behalf of members, develops new products and services to benefit agencies and professionals, and offer training and ongoing professional development. For more information, visit reinsw.com.au.