SQM Research released its latest data on residential rental property vacancy rates. Australia’s national residential vacancy rate fell to 1.1% in February 2026, down from 1.2% in January and notably down from February 2025 (1.3%). The total number of residential vacancies declined to 34,572 dwellings, indicating continued tightening in rental market conditions across most capital…
Capital city rental markets have continued to tighten over February with most cities reporting lower vacancy rates for both houses and units. Most capitals reported higher or steady house rents over the month with Hobart the top performer up by 1.7% followed by Perth higher by 1.4%, Darwin up 0.2% with Melbourne and Adelaide steady….
2026 is shaping up to be another year of solid, though uneven, growth. At its first meeting for 2026, the Reserve Bank lifted the cash rate to 3.85%, up from 3.6%, exactly as most economists expected. That move officially ends the shortest and most modest rate-cutting cycle since the RBA began inflation targeting back in…
Something interesting has just happened in the interest rate debate. For months Australians were told the worst of the interest rate cycle was behind us. Inflation was easing, the economy was slowing, and many commentators were confidently predicting rate cuts sometime in the near future. But suddenly the narrative has flipped. Two of Australia’s largest banks…
Something strange is happening in Australia’s housing market right now. In some of our major cities rents have actually fallen slightly over the past month. Sydney house rents, for example, dropped by about 2.4%, while Brisbane rents slipped nearly 2%. But before renters start celebrating, there’s a much bigger story unfolding beneath the surface. Vacancy…
Capital city auction clearance rates were again generally lower over the past week with buyers and sellers distracted by long weekend holidays in most capitals. Capital City This Week Last Week Same Week Last Year Auctions Rate Auctions Rate Auctions Rate Sydney 1278 70.6% 1489 70.3% 870 73.7% Melbourne 596 62.1% 1634 68.3% 495 67.7%…
SQM Research’s Weekly Asking Prices Index for the week ending 23 February 2026 showed continued upward momentum in dwelling prices nationally, signalling ongoing vendor confidence in the rising market Nationally, house asking prices rose 1.9% over the month, while unit prices increased 1.7%, with combined dwelling prices up 1.9% month-on-month and 13.6% year-on-year. Sydney recorded…
Australia’s economy grew at its fastest annual rate in almost three years in the December quarter, rising 2.6%, although this is still modest growth by historical standards. Gross domestic product (GDP) for the quarter rose 0.8%, picking up from 0.5% in the September quarter, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Both private-sector and government…
Two months into 2026, and we have seen a clear divergence in housing trends, with Sydney and Melbourne values flatlining while the mid-sized capitals continue to record a solid rate of gain at more than 1% month on month growth. Perth is showing the strongest trend, with home values jumping 2.3% in February, adding more…
National home price growth picked up in February, consistent with the seasonal lift in housing market activity after the holidays, according to PropTrack. The report shows that prices lifted across every capital city, while nationally values are now 9.1% higher than a year ago. The national increase marks the fastest annual pace of growth since…
