The number of residential rental properties available in Sydney reveals that APRA may need to rethink their recommendations to tighten lending to investors, according to a real estate association.
According to data released by the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW), the number of available properties remained steady at a low 1.7% in November.
REINSW President Malcolm Gunning says this means there is not enough rental supply in the Sydney market and that APRA’s concern over investor lending may be unfounded.
“The current vacancy rates show that supply is not meeting demand as parity is generally recognised as being 2%. Therefore we question the
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority's (APRA) concerns and recommendations for banks to tighten their lending criteria to investors,” REINSW President Malcolm Gunning said.
The data reveals availability in Inner Sydney fell 0.1% in November, while Outer Sydney vacancy rates increased 0.3%. The availability of Middle Sydney rental properties also fell in November, by 0.2%. According to Gunning, the lows in Inner Sydney have not been seen since February 2013.
It is the third month in a row that vacancy rates have been stable at 1.7%.
