Having said that, the situation appears to have stabilised in the past year, most likely due to rising income levels. 4. The rental market  The rental market is currently very tight right around Australia: •  Vacancy rates are very low, at less than 1½ per cent on average across Australia (Chart 12); and  •  Rents are rising quickly.
In the past year, newly negotiated rents rose by about 13 per cent, while all rents outstanding (as measured in the CPI) rose by about 7 per cent (Chart 13). BIS Review 49/2008  9  Why has this happened, and why isn’t more investment in rental housing taking place?