The median rent across Perth has fallen by $30 since March 2014, according to the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia. Perth's median metropolitan rent dropped by $10 to $430 per week through the March quarter, which typically broke down to $450 per week for a house and $420 for an apartment or villa.

The reiwa.com data also shows that it is taking longer to rent a property, with the average time taken to lease stretching to 36 days, up by almost a week on March last year.

REIWA president David Airey said that he expected the vacancy rate to climb further during the winter months. “The Perth vacancy rate lifted to 4.4 per cent for the first three months of the year, due to falling population growth, the volume of new dwellings on the market and the number of former tenants who became first home buyers while interest rates are low,” Airey said.

According to REIWA a vacancy rate of 3 per cent is considered normal. The number of rental properties on the Perth market currently had increased to around 7,080, up from 5,140 on the same time last year but that rents had remained steady in the three months to April. Perth rents peaked in the middle of 2013 when they hit $475 per week, but have since fallen by 9.5 per cent over the last two years as supply overtook demand.

Airey said many property owners would need to review their asking rents to attract and hold good tenants amid the competition.“It’s also important for properties to be well presented and properly maintained to attract interest and secure the best lease in the shortest time,” he said.