Investors flee: $500 rent goes from 4 bedders to one bedders in 5 yrs

Rents have escalated to the point where $500 now only gets a unit and generally a one bedder. A brutal analysis has revealed renters have lost three bedrooms on the exact same budget in just under five years – with experts warning of an exodus of ‘mum-and-dad’ landlords. Analysis unveiled to more than 600 banking, finance, and property leaders at Herron Todd White’s 38th Annual Queensland Property Market Overview showed median weekly rent for a newly leased four-bedroom house sat at roughly $500 in December 2021 but by mid-2026 only secured a one-bedder at median market rates. SMSF buyers have gone from being as much as 21 per cent of those hunting for house and land estates in South East Queensland to as low as 3 per cent now. The figures were a grim milestone for Queensland’s rental crisis with Herron Todd White managing director Gavin Hulcombe warning the rental pool is primed to shrink even further as punishing holding costs and federal tax changes spark an investor exodus. “For a family on the same budget, the choice has gone from a house with a backyard to a unit with a balcony,” Mr Hulcombe said. “That’s the reality for Queensland renters right now. And with investors, the p...