As promised a few weeks back, here is the what is happening with rents across regional Queensland.
| Regional Qld: median detached house weekly rents | |||
| Location/postcode | September Quarters | ||
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | |
| North Queensland | |||
| Cairns | $450 | $460 | $470 |
| Townsville (4812) | $380 | $405 | $415 |
| Thuringowa (4817) | $350 | $390 | $390 |
| Mackay | $380 | $420 | $450 |
| Whitsundays | $430 | $430 | $480 |
| Central Queensland | |||
| Livingstone Shire | $320 | $350 | $400 |
| Rockhampton | $355 | $380 | $420 |
| Gladstone (4680) | $265 | $290 | $340 |
| Emerald | $350 | $375 | $400 |
| Bundaberg (4670) | $350 | $360 | $370 |
| Hervey Bay (4655) | $375 | $380 | $400 |
| Maryborough | $330 | $330 | $330 |
| Gympie | $345 | $350 | $370 |
| Darling Downs | |||
| Gatton | $355 | $360 | $350 |
| Toowoomba (4350) | $390 | $420 | $450 |
| Goondiwindi | $390 | $390 | $420 |
| Dalby | $310 | $310 | $320 |
| Chinchilla/Miles | $275 | $295 | $295 |
| Warwick | $330 | $335 | $340 |
| Stanthorpe | $340 | $350 | $340 |
| Matusik + Queensland Residential Tenancies Authority. * Four bedroom houses. | |||
This week’s table outlines the recent and current median weekly detached housing rents across select regional Queensland areas.
Things have improved, and in some locations, substantially, rent wise in almost all of Queensland’s major regional markets.
Covid flight?
Well not really, this is just the usual property cycle if you ask me.
The regions where oversupplied in the mid-2010s. Since then little new investment housing stock has been built and the regions have also attracted fewer investors than normally would be the case.
Yet population growth still trudged along, and in time, the amount of vacant rental properties declined. Hence rental growth. It is really just about supply versus demand.
It does help if a few mines and construction projects start too.
Of course, there has been some Covid impact, but I reckon there will be a fair bit of snapback too.
‘Poverty is nicer in a more remote location’ is maybe overkill but it does have a certain truth to it, and it isn’t a great promotional slogan. It doesn’t win many hearts and minds.
Yet some of these regions do need to look at their future housing supplies, as their forward book looks very light.
For mine, if the major Queensland regions are going to keep up this type of housing momentum and capitalise on any potential population flight from the major capitals then they need more permanent and sustainable jobs. This means a different approach to infrastructure provision and decentralisation of state government operations.
Time will tell. Yet I won’t be holding my breath.
And as I have said here, Working From Home, for most, isn’t a trend, it is a current forced fashion. Fashions come and go. Anything forced also usually doesn’t last that long.