19 May 2010
There are signs that Sydney rents are resuming their strong upward march in the face of a worsening housing shortage, according to the Urban Taskforce.
“These are the areas where the housing supply is under greatest pressure,” Mr Gadiel said.
“Those wanting the benefits of compact, pedestrian friendly living in the inner suburbs have been denied choice by limitations on apartment development and high levies.
“Likewise, levies and land release policies have prevented land from being developed in outer suburban Sydney.
“As a result, more families are chasing a limited supply of rental houses.”
Mr Gadiel said rents in outer suburban Sydney increased by more than three times the rate of inflation.
“Rents for three bedroom houses shot up by 2.9 per cent in Sydney’s outer suburbs jumping from a median of $340 to $350 in just three months,” he said.
“This is only the latest jump in a rolling series of rent increases, for Sydney families, in the outer suburbs.
“Five years ago the median rental for a three bedroom house in the outer suburbs was just $240 a week, since then it has surged by 46 per cent, while inflation over the same period has been just 18 per cent.”
Some of the largest rent increases for three bedroom houses were in:
- Camden, which saw a $20 rise to a median weekly rent of $380;
- Pittwater, with a $30 a week jump to a rent of $650 a week;
- Sutherland, which had a $20 increase to a rent of $520;
- Hawkesbury, which increased by $10 to $340 a week;
- Gosford, which saw $10 increase to a rent of $340; and
- Fairfield, where there was a $10 increase to a weekly rent of $360.
“Median rents for two bedroom apartments in the inner suburbs of Sydney have soared by 4 per cent in just three months more than four times the rate of inflation,” Mr Gadiel said.
The biggest rises were in Woollahra with a $30 increase in the median rent to $570, followed by the City of Sydney with an increase of $20 a week to $590.
Botany and Ashfield councils followed, each with weekly rental increases of $10 a week to $370 and $380 respectively.
The Urban Taskforce is a property development industry group, representing Australias most prominent property developers and equity financiers.
The construction activity made possible by property developers contributes $78 billion to the national economy each year and creates 849,000 direct jobs.
