Warrnambool rent prices increase at least 10 per cent over the past year

Property investment group Real Estate Investar figures showed median rents in the past year for Warrnambool had gone up 10.8 per cent for houses, 10 per cent for townhouses, and 13.2 per cent for units.

Price jumps came as dozens of vulnerable Warrnambool residents dealt with endless rejections in their search for housing.

Rentals in the city's north and east have been identified by Ray White Warrnambool to have the highest price increases in the city.

The Standard found that a three-bedroom house on Koroit Street saw a 12.5 per cent rent price increase in the past year.

Two three-bedroom houses on Canterbury Road and Wildwood Crescent saw 20 per cent and 28 per cent increases from their previous listings, and a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house on Maxwell Grove was recently leased for $500 per week, a 25 per cent increase on its 2017 listing for $400 per week.

Recent two-bedroom townhouses placed on the rental market on Denneys and Verdon streets have shown no increase and a 32 per cent increase in rent price respectively since their last listings.

Current listings for units on Raglan Parade and Lynden Grove have seen smaller increases in rent with two-bedroom dwellings on both streets found to only be up four per cent.

Domain data showed an increase of 31.3 per cent in median house or unit rent price across the city over the past five years.

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Ray White property manager Hayley Shannon said recent rent price hikes were likely inflated due to government moratoriums on rent increases during the first year of the pandemic ending.

"People saw what seemed like a significant rental increase after those legislations were lifted," she said.

"But realistically because they hadn't seen a rent increase for those 12 to 18 months, it was the combination of rent from a two-year period."

However, Ms Shannon attributed rent increases mainly to the limited supply compared to the high demand in Warrnambool.

"There are not a lot of properties in Warrnambool to lease compared to the amount of people that are looking for properties," Ms Shannon said.

"So people are able to ask more for their properties and know that they'll still get interest at the higher prices and they're still able to secure a really good renter."

Ludeman Real Estate property manager James Wright said he had recently received an average of about 20 applications for properties as fierce competition had shortened rental listing periods.

"Usually within a week, an applicant has been approved by the owners," he said.

"In the past this would usually be a three-to-four-week process."

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