According to industry researcher BIS Shrapnel, rents in Sydney are expected to rise by as much as 40 per cent in the next five years.
“Rental markets throughout Australia are as tight as a drum, with vacancy rates in all capital cities below 2.5 per cent as at June 2006,” says BIS Shrapnel senior project manager, Jason Anderson.
In Sydney, the rental vacancy rate is at its lowest level on record, falling to 1.7 per cent in September.
“The overall vacancy rate for the city is 1.5 per cent and falling,” says Real Estate Institute of NSW President Cristine Castle.
According to the REINSW Vacancy Rate Survey for October 2006, Sydney will be in the grip of a rental housing crisis early in the New Year.