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Melbourne apartment rents fall for the first time in 15 years as COVID-19 hits the market – Domain News
Inner-city apartment rents have seen $35 a week stripped away in the June quarter, new figures show.
Apartment rents across Melbourne have fallen for the first time in 15 years, plummeting from the record highs recorded late last year, new figures show.
The June quarter Domain Rent Report, released Thursday, reveals the damage inflicted by COVID-19 unit rents have fallen by 3.5 per cent, shaving $15 off the median weekly rent price, now down to $415.
House rents across Melbourne also fell over the quarter, by 2.3 per cent, to a median $430 a week.
Rents dropped in almost every region of Melbourne except the Mornington Peninsula where both apartment and house rents remained unchanged as local holidaymakers buoyed the market.
Median unit rents – Melbourne, June quarter 2020
| Region | Median weekly rent | QoQ | YoY |
| Inner | $450 | -7.2% | -5.3% |
| Inner East | $420 | -3.4% | -2.3% |
| Inner South | $420 | -2.3% | -1.2% |
| North East | $370 | -2.6% | 0% |
| North West | $360 | -2.7% | -1.4% |
| Outer East | $385 | 0% | 1.3% |
| South East | $360 | -1.4% | 2.9% |
| West | $340 | -2.9% | -1.4% |
| Mornington Peninsula | $340 | 0% | 0.7% |
Source: Domain Rental Report, June quarter, 2020
Worst hit was the inner region of Melbourne, including the suburbs of Carlton, Fitzroy and the CBD, where apartment rents tumbled by 7.2 per cent to a median weekly rent of $450, down $35 a week.
House rents in the inner region also fell, dropping by 6.3 per cent over the quarter to slash $40 a week from the median rent, now $600.
Suburbs including Williamstown, Melton and Bacchus Marsh saw weekly rents fall by 2.9 per cent for units and 2.6 per cent for houses over the quarter. Median rents dropped by $10 in both instances to $340 and $380 a week respectively.
Median house rents – Melbourne, June quarter 2020
| Region | Median weekly rent | QoQ | YoY |
| Inner | $600 | -6.3% | -4.8% |
| Inner East | $590 | -1.7% | 0% |
| Inner South | $640 | -1.5% | -1.5% |
| North East | $400 | -2.4% | -2.4% |
| North West | $400 | -2.4% | -2.4% |
| Outer East | $440 | -2.2% | 0% |
| South East | $405 | 0% | 1.3% |
| West | $380 | -2.6% | -2.6% |
| Mornington Peninsula | $420 | 0% | 1.2% |
Source: Domain Rental Report, June quarter, 2020
Domain senior research analyst Nicola Powell said the figures showed there was a distinct difference in the markets in inner and outer Melbourne.
Its really clear that the inner suburbs have felt the brunt of the impact of COVID-19, Dr Powell said.
Job losses due to closures of businesses across the city, aimed at reducing the spread of the disease, and border closures both interstate and internationally, had all weighed heavily on the Melbourne rental market.
Dr Powell said advertised rentals between March and June jumped by a whopping 64 per cent compared with the same time last year, with one in three inner-city landlords now discounting their rents to attract tenants.
Those renting in the inner suburbs were most likely to have been affected by the job losses or a loss of work hours, meaning they were looking for a cheaper way to live.
They were either moving home or to bigger properties to lower the cost of living or asking for a discount in rent, she said.
Across Melbourne, agents reported tenants were targeting larger properties for rent reductions, takin advantage of the current market conditions that had swung in their favour in order to bag themselves a bigger home.
In the inner-east regions suburbs including Templestowe, Doncaster and Box Hill, tenants have been offering $25 less a week at times, Phillip Webb Real Estates chief executive Anthony Webb said.
Median unit rents – National, June quarter 2020
| City | Median weekly rent | QoQ | YoY |
| Sydney | $500 | -3.8% | -4.8% |
| Melbourne | $415 | -3.5% | -1.2% |
| Brisbane | $380 | -1.3% | 0% |
| Adelaide | $320 | 0% | 4.9% |
| Perth | $320 | 0% | 3.2% |
| Canberra | $470 | -2.1% | 0% |
| Darwin | $380 | 0% | -0.7% |
| Hobart | $380 | -8.4% | 0% |
| National | $447 | -3.2% | -2.9% |
Source: Domain Rental Report, June quarter, 2020
Jenny Caughey, the property management branch manager with Gary Peer, said the lack of international students had affected the rental market, especially in suburbs close to universities including Monash in Caulfield.
What were actually seeing is that theres a flood of one or two-bedroom smaller properties
