Australia’s extremely tight vacancy rate has eased slightly, with new data now putting it at 1.9%.

Despite the increase, up from 1.8% in October 2024, CoreLogic’s Quarterly Rental Review says all capital city markets remain below the 3% vacancy rate which represents a balanced market.

The tightest vacancy rate is 1.1% in Adelaide, followed by Perth, 1.4% and Melbourne, 1.8%. Hobart’s vacancy is 1.9%, Brisbane is 2.1%, Sydney is 2.5%, and Darwin is 2.8%. Another source of vacancy rate data, SQM Research, has different numbers, with a national vacancy rate of just 1.4%.

CoreLogic research director, Tim Lawless, says demand is falling in some capital cities amid slowing migration levels but he doesn’t believe it will ease the high rents many markets have recorded in the past couple of years. “I’m not expecting a sharp decline in rents nationally due to the underlying undersupply of rental properties,” he says.

Lawless expects the return of migration levels to pre-pandemic levels by FY2027, which he says will reduce demand and put downward pressure on rents.