# Why do rent prices seem reasonable in Melbourne?



## festiboi (Jan 26, 2018)

Hey everyone,
My husband and I are seriously considering moving back to my native Australia, and Melbourne specifically, in the coming year and have been scouring rental prices for some time.

Compared to where we currently live in Los Angeles, the prices in Melbourne seem affordable and there's more value.

A random search online provides tons of listings for one-bedrooms in Southbank, CBD, and surrounding suburbs for $400-$450/week. Most of these units are newer, modern, and even have laundry facilities and a parking space. 

On Craigslist, there's even ads for furnished apartments in the CBD for $200/week, but these seem a little too good to be true. 

What gives?

An apartment in LA for $400/week will be in an older 60's dwelling in a sketchy neighbourhood (and being LA, I do mean sketchy!) with coin operated laundry separate from the unit. Renting a newer, comparable unit in the centre of the city is now about $2,500/mo

The Melbourne prices aren't exactly cheap, but it's still more affordable than LA and there's a lot more to be excited about. And LA is cheaper than San Fran and NYC, both of which are obnoxious (small apartments in SFO are now in the $5,000/month range)

Is there a reason for these reasonable prices in the heart of a busy city that generally has higher wages than the U.S? Is there such a thing as rent control (common in California, where the rent can increase no more than several percent per year for tenants who stay in the same dwelling)? Or are these prices for a limited time and the leasing company will increase them significantly after a while?

I'm just looking for the "catch"

Thanks for anyone with an explanation to if we're seeing things the way they are


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## JTeam (Oct 2, 2017)

festiboi said:


> Hey everyone,
> My husband and I are seriously considering moving back to my native Australia, and Melbourne specifically, in the coming year and have been scouring rental prices for some time.
> 
> Compared to where we currently live in Los Angeles, the prices in Melbourne seem affordable and there's more value.
> ...


My place is mid range waterfront inner city and avg is 750 week furnished 2x2

Stay away from Craigslist

Look up fsiryfloss on facebook


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## JandE (Jul 17, 2015)

festiboi said:


> Is there a reason for these reasonable prices in the heart of a busy city that generally has higher wages than the U.S? Is there such a thing as rent control (common in California, where the rent can increase no more than several percent per year for tenants who stay in the same dwelling)? Or are these prices for a limited time and the leasing company will increase them significantly after a while?
> 
> I'm just looking for the "catch"
> 
> Thanks for anyone with an explanation to if we're seeing things the way they are


Supply and demand?

Some news on property:

The current state of the Melbourne apartment market: Developers completed 18,000 new apartments in Melbourne in 2016. Expected to grow to 19,000 in 2018.

Sep 12, 2017 - A rash of economic, regulatory and social factors are combining to deflate heated property markets and particularly high-rise apartments in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney, where a wave of supply is hitting the market..

"BIS, along with others, are consistently forecasting a glut in the Melbourne apartment market.

"They have previously forecasted an excess of 20,000 apartments across the state of Victoria by 2018. They've now revised this to a negligible 2,000," https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/opinion-melbournes-apartment-market-forecast-not-bleak

Apartment surge threatens to spill into oversupply: Citi - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

There is no rent control, but many sign for 12 months at a fixed rent, then see what happens at renewal. Some people then ask for a rent reduction, especially if there is a glut of cheaper options to move to.


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## DearMartin (Feb 15, 2018)

the price depends on supply and demand, I currently pay $ 500 a week, a good deal or a stroke of luck maybe!


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