Rental supply worsens

Hamish Heard
A new plunge in rental vacancies has left Geelong renters struggling to find homes, with demand outstripping supply.
Real Estate Institute of Victoria yesterday released figures showing the Geelong region had the state’s lowest level of vacant rental properties outside Melbourne.
REIV chief Enzo Raimondo said Geelong’s September rental vacancy rate of 1.6 per cent foreshadowed a rise in rental prices as demand soars.
The September vacancy figure was down a third on the previous month.
“Anything under two per cent and we’re talking about a situation where demand has outstripped supply,” Mr Raimondo said.
“The only thing that is certain in a very tight rental vacancy environment is that the rental prices will rise further.”
Mr Raimondo called for State Government reforms to encourage more investment properties amid Geelong’s worsening squeeze on rental vacancies.
“Geelong has a large university, so there are a lot of students and a high number of families in the rental market,” he said.
“We need to stimulate investment in student accommodation and other types of accommodation to meet that demand.
“It would be extremely difficult for anyone, whether they are students, families or singles, to find suitable rental accommodation within their price range or in a particular location.”
Mr Raimondo said Geelong’s low vacancy rate indicated a rental “crisis”.
“In terms of how we can tackle this problem, there are a number of options and we would like to see government extend stamp duty concessions to investors to attract more investment,” Mr Raimondo said.
The REIV was set to release data today showing a marginal increase in property values in the September quarter, he said.
Although the region as a whole remained “reasonably stable”, Mr Raimondo said increased values in Belmont, Geelong, Highton and Ocean Grove had contributed to price growth in the area.
“This just adds further pressure for first-home buyers who need to stay in rental accommodation longer while they save to buy their first house,” Mr Raimondo said.