Please note: The reposted broadcast is owned and published by Nightly News 7 Spencer Gulf, where Property Advisor Colin Lee has provided expert opinion on the property market. Click here to view the official published article.
Transcript:
“Port Lincoln rental properties are becoming a rarity with the town recording its lowest vacancy rates in more than a decade. Experts say that a high demand in the housing market will see rent prices surge in the coming months.
It’s a growing crisis across the nation leaving many Australians homeless. A lack of new developments and vacancies has tenants in Port Lincoln bracing for a spike in what they pay.
Colin – In Port Lincoln you’re looking at a 0.33 percent vacancy rate, that’s 0.33%, so that is a very very tight market, 3% just to give you an idea is a comfortable market.
Currently there are only 24 rental properties available in the city, a figure not seen in 10 years.
Since Christmas the market has just continued where we left off, the rental market is still very very strong, very the lowest vacancy rates we’ve seen for 15 years so it’s just so hard to get rental properties in the moment.
The looming election also spooking developers with many pausing projects as they await the result.
Colin – You know for developers they don’t want to start development applications and start construction, and not forgetting the rise of the cost of construction at the same time, it’s just a little bit too risky for them to get the ball rolling on new projects.
The average rent in Port Lincoln sits at $325 compared to $295 just 18 months ago. Some investors however are also capitalizing on the boom which is seeing stock removed from circulation.
I think there’s a few people sitting on them, there’s a few people move back into their investment property and a few of them are making use of the high sales market and selling their rental properties and that puts more stress on the available homes for rent.
Recent census data estimates more than 290,000 Australians are homeless, experts calling for more developments to be approved.
Colin – Land appreciates, building depreciates, so make sure you invest your money wisely..
So we do need some land developments that would absolutely take some ease and relax the market a bit.
Henry Millick, 7 Spencer Gulf News
