RENTAL growth for units in regional NSW are the highest in the country, a new report has shown.
The latest data from CoreLogic revealed median rental rates for units in regional NSW rose by 3.1 per cent to $330 a week during the December 2015 quarter, the largest rise of any broad regional market.
The highest rental growth for units in NSW was in the Murray region where rent increased by 4.5pc over the quarter to $230/week.
Multiple states achieved negative growth for the same housing stock. Rental growth for units in Tasmania plummeted to -4.2pc, in Western Australia they fell to -3pc and in Queensland they dropped by -2pc.
CoreLogic research analyst Cameron Kusher said the growth achieved in NSW was pushed along by strong markets on the East Coast.
“Much of this is being driven by the strength seen in the Illawarra and Mid-North Coast regions, which are both host to a relatively large unit rental market. To a lesser extent, the strong growth across the Murray unit rental market has contributed, however, there are far fewer units available to rent across this region,” Mr Kusher said.
He said the rental growth achieved in small towns like those in the Murray region tended to jump around as the median rental rate was more dependent on the type of stock advertised over the given period.
CoreLogic’s data showed the most expensive rental markets for both houses and units outside Sydney were the Richmond-Tweed region (where it costs an average of $430/week for houses and $390/week for units) and the Illawarra region (where it costs $440/week for houses and $380/week for units).
Mr Kusher said these two markets both have quite substantial employment hubs and have a strong tourism industry.
Rent growth for houses in regional NSW didn’t achieve the same growth as units. Growth for this stock was steady in the last quarter of 2015 where the median weekly rent for a house was $350.
