Australian rents hit record highs with vacancy rates at 1.5% and still falling

Directly affects the 3.1 million Australian renter households facing the sharpest annual rent increases in two years.

In a nutshell: Domain’s Q2 2026 Quarterly Rent Report (released 9 July) confirmed house rents reached an all-time national median of $700 per week — up 7.7% year-on-year. Sydney rose from $800 to $850 per week for houses in one quarter, the largest quarterly jump in four years. National vacancy rates have fallen to 1.5–1.6%, well below the long-term 2.5% average. Rents are rising fastest in Sydney and Darwin; property sale values meanwhile fell 0.4% in June.