CBA economist Harry Ottley has published a chart pack that illustrates the dire consequences of record net overseas migration on Australia’s rental market.
Residential building approvals have collapsed across the major jurisdictions:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Resi-building-approvals.png)
House commencements have also collapsed:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/House-commencements.png)
Apartment commencements have likewise collapsed:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Apartment-commencements.png)
The next chart summarises the situation at the national level, with approvals, commencements, and completions all collapsing:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Building-activity.png)
Meanwhile, net overseas migration is running at record levels across the major jurisdictions and nationally:
![Net overseas migration](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/NOM.png)
This record net overseas migration has driven population growth through the roof:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Population-growth.png)
The combination of record population growth and falling housing construction has pushed residential rental vacancy rates to rock-bottom levels:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rental-vacancy-rates-1.png)
Accordingly, rental growth has soared across the major capitals:
![Advertised rents](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Advertised-rents.png)
The next chart plots asking rents across the major capitals:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Capital-city-rents.png)
Finally, the surge in immigration has driven the rebound in house prices, despite the Reserve Bank of Australia’s aggressive monetary tightening:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Dwelling-prices.png)
Bottom line: Australia’s historically high net overseas migration has driving a gaping gap between housing demand and supply, which is driving up both prices and rents.
Even immigration influencer, Abul Rizvi, agrees that the situation has gotten out of hand:
![](https://api.macrobusiness.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Abul-Rizvi-Tweet.png)
The data is irrefutable.