Rental vacancies on the rise on Gold Coast

Rental vacancies continue to rise on the Gold Coast and other Queensland coast markets, according to the quarterly figures put out by The Real Estate Institute of Queensland.

The Gold Coast vacancy rate has risen to 5.2% in the June 2011 quarter up from 3.6% in the March quarter.

In June 2008, the Gold Coast vacancy rate stood at 3.8%, suggesting seasonal factors are not the only reason for vacancies rising to nearly double those of greater Brisbane (2.7%).

REIQ Gold Coast president John Newlands says people displaced by the Brisbane floods have now moved out of rented accommodation on the coast and back to Brisbane.

"We do rely heavily on tourism and from the construction side of things, so both those industries have been down but coming into summer tourism will obviously have a spike because people come to the Gold Coast in those summer months, so that should have a reflection on the vacancy rate coming into that period of time," he says.

The troubled Gold Coast market has been flagged by property analyst Michael Matusik, who says just one in seven dwellings approved on the Gold Coast was actually being built.

“This is against a typical 75% completion rate. Yet Gold Coast mayor Ron Clarke denies that there is anything wrong, citing that net employment has increased on the Gold Coast over the last 12 months and claiming that winning the 2018 Commonwealth Games bid will fix any issues. That assumes that there is anyone left with a job on the Gold Coast in seven years’ time,” he says.

The March 2011 quarter Midwood Gold Coast report revealed that the average for a one bedroom apartment on the Gold Coast had fallen from $295 a week to $290 a week while the average weekly rent for two bedroom apartments had stagnated at $350 a week.

A search across realestate.com.au found 1,029 two-bedroom apartments on the Gold Coast available to rent for under $350 a week.

Among these, McGrath agent Margaret Robins is offering a two-bedroom apartment overlooking Kirra Beach for just $205 a week.

Julie Roberts from Surfers Real Estate is offering a two-bedroom apartment with parking on Brighton Street, Biggera Waters, within walking distance of Broadwaters in Surfers Paradise for $225 a week.

Source: REIQ

Rental vacancies have also risen in other coastal regions heavily reliant on tourism.

The Sunshine Coast vacancy rate has risen to 4.9% over the June quarter, from 3.7% in March. In June 2008, vacancies stood at 3.2%.