Australia’s rental market is set to experience an all-time record-high increase in household rents

In not-so-unexpected news for property investors across Australia, unit rental costs in most capital cities experienced the steepest annual fall on record, hitting the lowest asking price since early 2014. Many investors continued to struggle with the impact of Covid-19 on the housing market, such as fewer overseas travellers and greater levels of unemployment pushing down demand. Conversely, house rent prices grew in most capital cities across Australia (excluding Melbourne). Darwin saw a sharp increase of 12.2 per cent over the December quarter, rising from a median weekly asking price of $490 to $550 – now on par with Sydney’s median weekly house price. “House rents are now at a record high following the steepest annual gain in just over a decade,” advised Domain Senior Research Analyst, Dr Nicola Powell. Sydney’s median price for houses grew 1.9 per cent to $550 a week, but Canberra recorded the highest median weekly house price at $600. Melbourne was the only capital city that saw no growth – no doubt influenced by the impact of its Covid-19 outbreak and tough lockdown restrictions. It was a different story for our nation’s biggest capital cities in terms of median unit prices, as Sydney experienced a 5.1 per cent drop quarter-on-quarter. Melbourne followed suit, with unit rental prices falling 3.0 per cent in the same time frame from $400 to $388 a week. Source: x House rental prices rise, unit rental prices fall ... The gap between house and unit rental prices has grown over the December quarter, according to the latest data from Domain’s December Rental Report. www.ratecity.com.au

The demand for warehouses is increasing on the back of a significant shift in consumer habits, with the Australia Bureau of Statistics revealing that nearly 1 million residences shopped online for the first time last year. And while shoppers have since been allowed to return to physical stores, the online craze is not going away with the ABS recently noting that more items were purchased online in the first week of December than ever recorded before. “There is no denying that online shopping grew strongly through 2020, and this reached a new level in December as millions of people chose to buy their Christmas gifts online,” Mr Boys said. “Ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, social distancing and reduced domestic flights coupled with significantly higher parcel volumes, meant that delivering Christmas 2020 for all Australians was always going to be incredibly challenging.” The online-only business, which specialises in selling outdoor furniture, home and garden products, first came to Australia in 2014, with its latest national distribution hub set for completion in April 2020. The news follows Amazon’s plans to build an even larger 200,000 sq m warehouse in Sydney, and DHL’s announced distribution capacity expansion with the launch of four new state-of-the-art storage facilities around Australia. Continue reading at: x Online shopping surge breathes new life into munda... The online shopping surge born out of the COVID-19 pandemic has breathed new life into a considerably mundane type of commercial property, as customers shift their habits from major malls to digital s... www.smartpropertyinvestment.com.au

It comes as the housing market finished 2020 on a high, with Sydney prices climbing nearly 1.3 per cent over the past three months of the year – despite the COVID-19 threat. Property researchers and some banks have tipped home prices to rise by at least 5 per cent this year, with some forecasters, including SQM Research, revealing a double digit rise cannot be ruled out. “A lack of competition can suggest it is not a quality property. And if you buy a bargain, you’ll sell a bargain.” Ms Bakos said the key to buying in a hot market was to target homes and locations well within budget. “Buyers who are repeatedly outbid are usually going for properties that are out of their budget to start with,” she said. Advantage Property Consulting director Frank Valentic said buying a “lemon” would be more costly in the long run than overpaying for a quality home. “You don’t want to end up making a lemon purchase by buying in a cheaper suburb that doesn’t suit your lifestyle, or buying a cheaper house you have to turn around and sell two years later,” he said. Source: x Tips for first-home buyers in a hot Sydney propert... With Sydney becoming a seller’s market first-home buyers competing for properties are in a tricky position, and need to be mindful of some common traps. www.realestate.com.au

Australia's housing markets ended 2020 with solid gains across capital cities and regional markets, setting a positive outlook for the year ahead, according to the latest report from CoreLogic. Over the year to December, national house prices grew by 3%, driven by the 2% growth in capital cities and 6.9% gain in regional markets. In fact, the number of property sales plummeted by 40% through March and April but finished the year with almost 8% more sales relative to a year ago as buyer numbers surged through the second half of the year. "Despite the volatility, housing values showed remarkable resilience, falling by only 2.1% before rebounding with strength throughout the final quarter of 2020," he said. The table below shows the changes in house prices across capital cities: Source: x Strong year-end for house prices Regional markets continued to outperform capital cities in terms of price growth www.yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au

Tenants are being urged to renegotiate their rent as international border closures during the COVID-19 pandemic continue to put downward pressure on the rental market. Advertised apartment rents in Sydney have dropped by nearly 10 per cent over the past year, while house rents dropped by an average of 6.4 per cent, data from SQM Research revealed. The suburbs with the biggest drops in rents tended to be the areas that had previously attracted the most overseas arrivals. Apartment rents in the CBD dropped by nearly 26 per cent and nearly 8 per cent of the properties remain vacant. There were similar drops in some of the suburbs surrounding the University of NSW, including Kensington, Randwick and Kingsford. Get more details at: x The Sydney suburbs where you should be renegotiati... Landlords are under renewed pressure to cut rents and many are now offering weeks of free rent to attract tenants – but renters’ chances of getting a bargain vary across suburbs. www.realestate.com.au

Western Sydney’s growth corridors have become the top draw for first homebuyers due to the abundance of new housing eligible for government grants and discounts. Online search trends over the past year revealed suburbs such as Schofields, Box Hill, Marsden Park and Quakers Hill were among the areas attracting the most first homebuyer inquiries last year. These suburbs were all rich with new housing estates and the bulk of newly built or under construction homes were priced well under $1 million. Parramatta, where developers have released a slew of new apartments, was the most searched suburb for first-time unit buyers. There was a similar surge in first homebuyer interest in Liverpool and Blacktown, which also had a significant pipeline of new unit projects. Source: x Most popular suburbs for first homebuyers: new est... First-home buyers armed with cheap loans have been streaming into key pockets of Sydney over the past year – these were the suburbs that were the most popular. www.realestate.com.au