After a brief reprieve last month, the latest REINSW Vacancy Rate Survey results show that residential vacancies in Sydney have once again taken a dive.

“The vacancy rate for Sydney overall dropped by 0.3% for the month to be just 1.7%,” REINSW CEO Tim McKibbin said. “The drop is attributable to vacancies in the Inner Ring dropping by 0.7% to be 2.2% and brings the residential vacancy rate to its lowest level in almost five and a half years, when it sat at 1.7% in August 2017.

“This really is a historical low for Sydney and shows that the rental crisis has definitely taken hold.”

Areas outside the Inner Ring of Sydney fared better, with the Middle Ring of Sydney remaining stable at 1.4% and the Outer Ring rising by 0.1% to 1.6%.

Outside Sydney, vacancy rates in the Hunter decreased, while the Illawarra increased.

“In the Hunter region, the vacancy rate decreased by 0.1% to be 1.6%,” Mr McKibbin said. “The Illawarra region increased to 1.2% (+0.3%).”

Vacancy rates across regional New South Wales were a mixed bag, with some areas easing and others tightening.

“Vacancy rates for the Albury, Mid-North Coast, Murrumbidgee, Northern Rivers, Orana and South Coast areas all recorded increases,” Mr McKibbin said. “However, the Central Coast, Central West, New England, Riverina and South East areas each dropped.

“REINSW members are telling us that they’ve never experienced such a lack of supply. The shortage of stock is extreme and there’s no denying that the rental crisis is real.

“In the face of cost-of-living pressures, many tenants would embrace the opportunity to secure a more affordable rental property. However, despite rent increases, they’re choosing to stay put because they’re just not confident that they’ll be able to secure another property.

“It’s a very stressful time for tenants.”