Students To Drive Up Rents

The return of international students to Australia is tipped to increase rents by a further 5% in the coming months.

Up to 50,000 Chinese students are set to return to Australia for the start of the university year, which Suburbtrends founder Kent Lardner says will ramp up demand for rental properties and rents.

“We usually see an increase in vacancy rates in the suburbs around the university campuses over the Christmas break, but in the coming weeks students will be returning, and new students begin their search, which will see vacancies quickly drop to below 1% in most suburbs,” he says.

“The return of the Chinese students is likely to make this competition rather fierce, and I expect to see rental increases of at least 5% in the next four weeks or so.”

In Sydney and Victoria many student housing providers already have no vacancies with education consultant Tim Winkler saying some students may end up deferring if they cannot find accommodation.