Melbourne rents hit record high in post-pandemic bounce back

Unit rents in Melbourne have jumped $15 a week and the cost of renting a house has hit a record high of $450 in the March quarter, as the rental market bounces back post-pandemic more quickly than expected.

Senior economist at ANZ, Felicity Emmett, says some rentals are being taken off the market, and it partially explains the surging prices.

“Advertised rental stock is very low in lots of areas, in many cases lower than it was prior to the pandemic,” she told Jimmy Bartel and Shane McInnes, filling in for Ross and Russel.

Living through the pandemic has also changed housing preferences.

“There’s also anecdotes that there’s people who don’t want to share a house. Especially if you’re working from home you don’t want four of you sitting around the kitchen table,” Ms Emmett said.

“Then we have the borders opening and that’s proving to be another stress on the market.”

The average unit rental price in Melbourne is $390, while the median rental asking price for a house is $450.

Press PLAY below to hear what’s fuelling the rental price hikes