SQM Research has released its rental vacancy data for December, which registered a 0.3% rise over the month but no change over the year:
As noted by SQM, rental vacancies typically rise in December, thus the monthly increase represents seasonality. SQM also believes that this may represent the peak, given the sharp falls in dwelling construction amid strong population growth:
While vacancy rates did rise in December, this was predominantly due to the seasonal movement of students and some industry specific workers. It is actually quite likely we have reached the peak in national rental vacancy rates with ongoing strong population growth absorbing current surplus rental stock over 2020.
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