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A DOWNTURN in Bendigo development five years ago may be responsible for pressure on tenants in the city's extremely tight rental market. Greater Bendigo building approvals dropped by 35 per cent between 2013-14 and 2016-17. PRD Nationwide director Tom Isaacs said fewer investors coming into Bendigo several years ago had driven rents up and availability down. Developers have blamed a number of factors for the downturn, including a broader slowdown in Australia's economy. Read more: 'Prohibitive' - What's putting developers off Bendigo's CBD Mr Isaacs said a drop in construction of investor properties meant fewer homes were available to rent. He said this was driving prices up for tenants. Bendigo Loddon's vacancy rate sits at 1 per cent. It has hovered about 1 and 1.1 per cent for several months. Mr Isaacs said Greater Bendigo's vacancy rate was below 1 per cent. He said 12-30 people were turning up to most properties advertised for rent. Renters and advocates have described a difficult market, forcing some to send their children to live with extended family. Mr Isaacs dated the development downturn to about three years ago. He said it had since improved, but the city's housing was lagging two or three years. Australian Bureau of Statistics data for the past 19 years shows the number of building permits issued in Bendigo peaked in 2011-12 at 1217. The number dropped by 386 between 2013-4 and 2016-17, from 1105 to 719. It then began to rise again. Read more: 'It's certainly a challenge': affordable rentals scarce Building permits are documents that certify a proposed building meets all the relevant regulations. The permit is a written approval by a private or municipal building surveyor. They are separate from planning permits, which are issued by a local council. The ABS data counts the number of dwelling units created by the issue of building permits, rather than the number of permits issued. Developer Damien O'Shannessy said job losses, a severe drought and a flat real estate market caused the 2013-14 downturn in Bendigo's real estate market. He said tighter lending regulation after the Royal Commission gave the market another "kick in the guts". But Mr O'Shannessy said things were now turning around, with market rises, first home buyers and keen out-of-town investors. Read more: Solving Bendigo's housing crisis is taking some time, here's what's next He said low vacancy rates were socially unsustainable, meaning even really desirable tenants couldn't find places to live. "It's not good for the market, and it's not good for the community. Because you need to be able to have a good supply of rental properties," Mr O'Shannessy said. Mr O'Shannessy said current interest in the Bendigo market would help the problem with rental availability, but take time. But he said it wouldn't fix the problem entirely. "People are seeing value in Bendigo, which is fantastic. It's a happy story today. What happened years ago is in the past," he said. "Because of the number of investors we're seeing coming to Bendigo, I'd hope to see in 12 months it'll help." Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.
Building permits are documents that certify a proposed building meets all the relevant regulations. The permit is a written approval by a private or municipal building surveyor.
They are separate from planning permits, which are issued by a local council.
The ABS data counts the number of dwelling units created by the issue of building permits, rather than the number of permits issued.
Developer Damien O'Shannessy said job losses, a severe drought and a flat real estate market caused the 2013-14 downturn in Bendigo's real estate market.
He said tighter lending regulation after the Royal Commission gave the market another "kick in the guts".
But Mr O'Shannessy said things were now turning around, with market rises, first home buyers and keen out-of-town investors.
He said low vacancy rates were socially unsustainable, meaning even really desirable tenants couldn't find places to live.
"It's not good for the market, and it's not good for the community. Because you need to be able to have a good supply of rental properties," Mr O'Shannessy said.
Mr O'Shannessy said current interest in the Bendigo market would help the problem with rental availability, but take time. But he said it wouldn't fix the problem entirely.
"People are seeing value in Bendigo, which is fantastic. It's a happy story today. What happened years ago is in the past," he said.
"Because of the number of investors we're seeing coming to Bendigo, I'd hope to see in 12 months it'll help."
Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.
