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If you are anywhere remotely close to a landlord or a tenant in your friendship sphere, you will know that rents across Australia have risen dramatically and continue to do so. Some people say we are in a ‘rental crisis.’ Others say Australia is playing ‘catch-up’ on the moratorium on evictions which commenced in 2020.
The theme of the stories are largely from the side of tenants, there is outrage at the increased cost of renting a property, a rent increase at every available opportunity and the bidding that is becoming a standard practice when competing against a crowd to lease a property.
What can be done about rapidly rising rents and when will this even out are the current questions that Australians are seeking an answer for.
By the end of the pandemic, available investment property was 40% less in Sydney than when we started according to the State of Nation's Housing Report 2021 - 2022, prepared by the NHFIC. This is largely due to a booming property market which saw investors capitalise on their opportunity for high returns. The report also states that regional dwelling prices increased on average 26% and 21% in cities across the country. All of this equates to less available investment property to rent.
Of equal concern is housing supply in general and the changing definition of Australia’s typical household. The housing report forecasts an additional 1.7 million new households in Australia between 2022 and 2032. Changes to the way we live though accounts for a further 488,000 dwellings for ‘couples without children households’ and single person household will reach an additional 588,000 homes. The imminent opening of borders which is necessary to support labour can only create more strain.
Solutions come in many forms. Affordable housing for key workers is now necessary to support our health workers, blue collar workers and teachers. Rents are beyond affordable for key workers, governments must step in to support a solution.
Housing supply is another. The report details that it takes six years on average to get new housing supply to market. They identify the area of planning and building commencement as bottlenecks to this process. Interesting. With Australia’s borders closed, our labour force is largely under-resourced. Teachers, nurses and train drivers have already demonstrated they will strike without reform and I’ve spoken before about the numbers leaving the property management industry. The planning and building sectors too rely on labour to deliver their service.
What will Australia's current political opponents commit as solutions to supporting Australia's workforce, the growing demand for housing, support for key workers and the currently prolonged process for supply?
