Numerous vacant rental properties are forcing some Rotorua landlords to offer special incentives like supermarket vouchers to lure prospective tenants, a rental manager says.
According to the latest Trade Me quarterly rent analysis, the number of Rotorua rental properties listed on the website between January and March was 10 percent higher than a year ago. Currently, about 330 Rotorua rental properties are listed. And while the number of properties listed has jumped, interest from renters dropped 10 per cent year-on-year, figures showed. McDowell Professionals rental manager Carol Tildesley said Rotorua's rental market varied widely between months. "It's swings and roundabouts as to what's moving and what's not moving.
"There's three bedrooms, there's two bedrooms, there's some in lower socio-economic [areas] like Murupara and then you've got some in Marama Point." She did not believe there was an over-supply. But landlords might struggle to rent properties if a large number of similar-bedroom homes were also available on the rental market. The agencies recommended that landlords offered incentives like supermarket or power vouchers to encourage tenants, rather then drop rent, she said. "People can pick and choose - it's a matter of putting the cherry on top of yours to make sure you get the tenant."
Russell Hardie director Donna Russell said she was aware of other Rotorua companies offering incentives, but it was not something she did often. Instead, she stressed to landlords the importance of having their properties priced within the market range and presented as well as possible, she said. "[They need to] have it looking fresh, lawns mowed, that wow factor when tenants see it," she said. "That's more important now when people have more choice."
She said it was a good time to be a renter looking for a property in Rotorua. "There's lots to choose from ... tenants are taking more time to make a choice because they can."
Trade Me figures showed average rent between January and March dropped 2 per cent in Rotorua compared to last year. The average weekly rent for the period was $261. Nationally, the average asking rent in the three months to March was 3 per cent higher than the same period last year - despite weaker market interest and higher numbers of available rentals. Brendon Skipper, head of Property at Trade Me said investors returning to the property market had contributed to the overall increase in rental properties, which was up 5 per cent on last year, figures showed.
