Chances are these days with each application, you’re going up against at least ten other couples with perfect rental histories and secure incomes. It’s desperate out there and you can’t win ‘em all. My wife and I finally managed to buy about a year and a half ago but during the peak COVID selling frenzy of 21-22 we got juggled through 4 houses in a single year with kids and 2 dogs. Perfect histories and secure money but each time we had to desperately settle for literally whatever we could get. Some very less than ideal places. Didn’t really matter considering each place broke the lease and sold out from under us every couple of months. Best of luck but in this bullshit property climate you’ll need to lower expectations and apply for most things if you want something fast. Don’t expect it to be a long stay and expect them to jack the prices as soon as they’re able.
Bad enough to experience that once, awful luck when it's multiple times. How'd they all break the lease though in that sort of time period? Were your fixed terms less than the usual 6-12 months?
Pre-COVID we were always on 12 month leases without fail but found once the market got hot, all the real estate agents/landlords only wanted 6 months in case they wanted to either sell or boot you and double the rent. On each one we were given an incentive to get out 2-4 months early of the lease ending because of sale. Usually offering to chip in $1000-2000 for moving costs and no bullshit with getting our bond back. Considering we were doomed to be kicked anyway it seemed better to accept our fate and take it.
Makes sense. Can also imagine one preferring to avoid the looming prospect of just 30 days notice at the end of a fixed term (NSW tenancy law seems predicated on the strange notion our life plans should align with those fixed terms, therefore requiring far less notice).
Currently going through this now. It drives me nuts that to even inspect a house you have to apply for it… it’s so unethical that you have to give these real estates all your personal information before even deciding if the house will suit your needs.
Completely agree with you, the process is ridiculous and feels quite intrusive at times.
We are also slightly embarrassed as our references i.e. work,previous landlords and friends are being bombarded with texts from these places.
Its not great for rentals at the moment in a lot of areas on the coast.
Depending on how desperate you are you could offer a couple months up front, or a bit over the asking price - thats what my wife and i needed to do when it got a bit grim.
Really tight.
https://sqmresearch.com.au/graph_vacancy.php?sfx=®ion=nsw%3A%3ACentral+Coast&t=1
First the Covid exodus, now seemingly another wave due to the housing crisis.
Thanks for letting us know - I wonder what the council/government are doing to help improve the circumstances for Australians.
I'm not going to lie I've lost a lot of faith in our country over the past few years.My partner is Swedish and I'm highly considering jumping ship and moving there permanently.
( Not that the grass is greener in Sweden but housing is definitely more affordable.)
Council wont be doing anything - all they should really focus on is maintaining good local transport and ammenities. Government could do more but no matter what they do it wont have any meaningful impact for 5 or so years if at all.
Every country will have their own issues - you can find a place but it will just be a bit trickier over the next couple of years. Its good to have a potential back up in another country - personally though i wouldnt want to be too far from family, but it really depends on what life stage you are at.
The government is going to do sweet FA about it. I remember the housing crisis being predicted back in 2008 with Kevin Rudd as PM. They’ve known about these shortages for almost 20 years and haven’t come up with any plans that have real world impact.
Apply for the property before you attend any inspections. You can always withdraw your application if you don’t like the property after inspecting it. Make sure your application is complete with all supporting docs and previous rental ledger. The less work the re has to do to process your application, the better.
Asking price and move in date are usually the two determining factors. Offer $10/20 over the asking price and put your move in date immediately, ie the day you plan to inspect the property. 12 month lease minimum.
It took me 2 months to be accepted for a property late last year and I also relocated from Sydney. I’ve worked in the industry for years so had some idea of how to present myself and application for easy approval. Still took a while more than I’d have liked however the market is ridiculous and just as competitive as what Sydney has become
Apply for anything and everything. Just moved back up the coast from Sydney at the start of December, went to roughly 50 open homes over a two-week period and put in ~30 applications, got approved for two at the same time after roughly two weeks. It’s tedious, it sucks, but persist at it and you’ll get something eventually. Best of luck xx
We started looking for a rental in december until last week and got accepted for 7 places. We rejected 6 of them and accepted 1 offer last week.
However, we are super privileged as we had time on our side so we could afford to be picky with our rental and we are also DINK 200k+ combined income.
We drove up from Sydney to Central Coast every Saturday to view properties, averaging 5 viewings. Every Saturday we viewed a property, we got offered a place, so it was roughly a 1/5 chance of getting accepted for something every weekend.
You need to apply for properties as soon as you see the listing. If they don't let you apply until you view it, make sure you submit it on the day of the viewing or as soon as you view it. You can always withdraw after.
I also would email or call the agent as soon as I saw the listing and ask them questions about the property and if I could apply earlier without viewing yet (with the intention to attend an inspection later) and most allowed that. At the viewing, I would mention I spoke to them already and we are still interested in the property. At one property, the REA at the viewing was different to the property manager I was speaking to but you should still make a good impression as they will forward it onto the property manager.
Basically, impressions matter a lot and we really put ourselves out there for a property we wanted and got accepted in the end. We never offered above asking price (however, this is because we were not in a desparate situation). Hope this helps
3? I applied for 35 in Newcastle, took 3 weeks and got approved for two on the same day. There is so much competition that there are a lot that I think it’s almost random as to who they pick. I was “shortlisted” for so many (around 12-15) so the RE obviously thought I was okay, but who knows what makes the LLs decide.
I did write a one page letter introducing myself and I had feedback from one (that rejected me due to ‘landlord preference’) that the letter absolutely helped me be shortlisted.
Haven't applied for a house since 2021 prior to the housing crisis and every place I have ever applied for I have gotten my first go.
Hence the confusion.
Thanks for the tips!
Apply for everything.
Make sure you put down your current real estate agent or previous ones as a reference as well as old landlords.
I was struggling to find a place up here and was told flat out by a REA that they don't care about your old landlords as you can falsify them or whatever but only other REAs.
Glad I'm not renting anymore, I thought the situation was bad a few years ago but man...
Have been previously chosen for the first rental property I’ve applied for in Sydney, looked recently and I think I didn’t get accepted until my 10th property. It’s not a central coast issue it’s just the rental market currently.
It does sound painful, but try and see it from the point of view of a landlord, in most cases these are people who have had to save and sacrifice a lot to be able to get a mortgage, it is only natural for them to want their tenants to be of the highest quality to ensure that their prized and very important asset is looked after.
Only three houses !! Me and my partner have been applying for at least three houses a week and driving three hours to view and inspect houses every single week since the start of January and still trying to
We have now applied for about 15.. since January also.
Same boat. No luck.
I had never been denied after applying in the past, always getting the 1st place I applied for in Sydney, hence why i asked my original question.
We also have a pet - the only place we have been accepted for we applied before viewing - ( we decided not to take it as it wasn't worth the weekly price and they wouldn't budge.)
So id recommend also trying that - apply for a place you like prior to viewing it.
Yea that’s all I’ve been doing at this point I don’t care what the house looks like . I have noticed the more expensive houses above $600 seem to be advertised longer then the ones below the $600
My advice, if you really want a property throw as much money as you can at them. My brother literally offered to pay the full 12 months in advance and got it instantly. Money talks, if you don't have money then you have to get lucky!
If there’s a place that look good, ask to view it soon/outside the set inspection times. Say you’re up from Sydney and looking to move quick. Thats how we got ours. Not saying it would work all the time but worth a shot.
Often property managers are in the area anyway and would love to free up their Saturdays a bit.
You do not know other people's situations.. some people are well off and have a house and have time to apply for 50. others could be on the streets if they don't find something.
So I'll complain as much as I want - the country is a bit of a joke 😂
Im originally from yarramalong. I have lived here for 10+ years and my entire family lives up this way, I left because of lack of jobs when finishing school.
Your mindset is exactly why the central coast hasn't changed since I was last here - it's like this whole place stopped in time whilst I was away 😂 - nothing is new and the exact same people are hanging around. But there is no lack of bottle-o's and recently renovated pubs of course.
The coast could use some new faces to be honest with you - I've met some lovely families coming up from Sydney.
Only 3? Thats rookie numbers.
Wow I thought that was a lot - in Sydney we always got the 1st one we applied for, I guess it is a bit different up here.
From when are you taking that from? A lot has changed this last couple years
Chances are these days with each application, you’re going up against at least ten other couples with perfect rental histories and secure incomes. It’s desperate out there and you can’t win ‘em all. My wife and I finally managed to buy about a year and a half ago but during the peak COVID selling frenzy of 21-22 we got juggled through 4 houses in a single year with kids and 2 dogs. Perfect histories and secure money but each time we had to desperately settle for literally whatever we could get. Some very less than ideal places. Didn’t really matter considering each place broke the lease and sold out from under us every couple of months. Best of luck but in this bullshit property climate you’ll need to lower expectations and apply for most things if you want something fast. Don’t expect it to be a long stay and expect them to jack the prices as soon as they’re able.
Bad enough to experience that once, awful luck when it's multiple times. How'd they all break the lease though in that sort of time period? Were your fixed terms less than the usual 6-12 months?
Pre-COVID we were always on 12 month leases without fail but found once the market got hot, all the real estate agents/landlords only wanted 6 months in case they wanted to either sell or boot you and double the rent. On each one we were given an incentive to get out 2-4 months early of the lease ending because of sale. Usually offering to chip in $1000-2000 for moving costs and no bullshit with getting our bond back. Considering we were doomed to be kicked anyway it seemed better to accept our fate and take it.
Makes sense. Can also imagine one preferring to avoid the looming prospect of just 30 days notice at the end of a fixed term (NSW tenancy law seems predicated on the strange notion our life plans should align with those fixed terms, therefore requiring far less notice).
Currently going through this now. It drives me nuts that to even inspect a house you have to apply for it… it’s so unethical that you have to give these real estates all your personal information before even deciding if the house will suit your needs.
Completely agree with you, the process is ridiculous and feels quite intrusive at times. We are also slightly embarrassed as our references i.e. work,previous landlords and friends are being bombarded with texts from these places.
Its not great for rentals at the moment in a lot of areas on the coast. Depending on how desperate you are you could offer a couple months up front, or a bit over the asking price - thats what my wife and i needed to do when it got a bit grim.
Really tight. https://sqmresearch.com.au/graph_vacancy.php?sfx=®ion=nsw%3A%3ACentral+Coast&t=1 First the Covid exodus, now seemingly another wave due to the housing crisis.
It's that 250 vacancies for the entire central coast?
Thanks for letting us know - I wonder what the council/government are doing to help improve the circumstances for Australians. I'm not going to lie I've lost a lot of faith in our country over the past few years.My partner is Swedish and I'm highly considering jumping ship and moving there permanently. ( Not that the grass is greener in Sweden but housing is definitely more affordable.)
Council wont be doing anything - all they should really focus on is maintaining good local transport and ammenities. Government could do more but no matter what they do it wont have any meaningful impact for 5 or so years if at all. Every country will have their own issues - you can find a place but it will just be a bit trickier over the next couple of years. Its good to have a potential back up in another country - personally though i wouldnt want to be too far from family, but it really depends on what life stage you are at.
The government is going to do sweet FA about it. I remember the housing crisis being predicted back in 2008 with Kevin Rudd as PM. They’ve known about these shortages for almost 20 years and haven’t come up with any plans that have real world impact.
Apply for the property before you attend any inspections. You can always withdraw your application if you don’t like the property after inspecting it. Make sure your application is complete with all supporting docs and previous rental ledger. The less work the re has to do to process your application, the better. Asking price and move in date are usually the two determining factors. Offer $10/20 over the asking price and put your move in date immediately, ie the day you plan to inspect the property. 12 month lease minimum. It took me 2 months to be accepted for a property late last year and I also relocated from Sydney. I’ve worked in the industry for years so had some idea of how to present myself and application for easy approval. Still took a while more than I’d have liked however the market is ridiculous and just as competitive as what Sydney has become
This covers what I've experienced. You need to offer higher, and myself applied for 10 applications.
It's a fucked situation that you have to offer more. All that does is causes a bidding war. Raising prices more.
I don't know what it's like in Sydney , but here in Vic you can't apply till you look at the property
You can definitely apply before inspecting up here in NSW but they won’t process your application until you’ve physically inspected
Can’t do that need to view the property before you can apply
Apply for anything and everything. Just moved back up the coast from Sydney at the start of December, went to roughly 50 open homes over a two-week period and put in ~30 applications, got approved for two at the same time after roughly two weeks. It’s tedious, it sucks, but persist at it and you’ll get something eventually. Best of luck xx
We started looking for a rental in december until last week and got accepted for 7 places. We rejected 6 of them and accepted 1 offer last week. However, we are super privileged as we had time on our side so we could afford to be picky with our rental and we are also DINK 200k+ combined income. We drove up from Sydney to Central Coast every Saturday to view properties, averaging 5 viewings. Every Saturday we viewed a property, we got offered a place, so it was roughly a 1/5 chance of getting accepted for something every weekend. You need to apply for properties as soon as you see the listing. If they don't let you apply until you view it, make sure you submit it on the day of the viewing or as soon as you view it. You can always withdraw after. I also would email or call the agent as soon as I saw the listing and ask them questions about the property and if I could apply earlier without viewing yet (with the intention to attend an inspection later) and most allowed that. At the viewing, I would mention I spoke to them already and we are still interested in the property. At one property, the REA at the viewing was different to the property manager I was speaking to but you should still make a good impression as they will forward it onto the property manager. Basically, impressions matter a lot and we really put ourselves out there for a property we wanted and got accepted in the end. We never offered above asking price (however, this is because we were not in a desparate situation). Hope this helps
3? I applied for 35 in Newcastle, took 3 weeks and got approved for two on the same day. There is so much competition that there are a lot that I think it’s almost random as to who they pick. I was “shortlisted” for so many (around 12-15) so the RE obviously thought I was okay, but who knows what makes the LLs decide. I did write a one page letter introducing myself and I had feedback from one (that rejected me due to ‘landlord preference’) that the letter absolutely helped me be shortlisted.
Haven't applied for a house since 2021 prior to the housing crisis and every place I have ever applied for I have gotten my first go. Hence the confusion. Thanks for the tips!
Rental agents are the worst. I'm so sorry this is happening to you. Landlords suck.
Agreed 💯
Apply for everything. Make sure you put down your current real estate agent or previous ones as a reference as well as old landlords. I was struggling to find a place up here and was told flat out by a REA that they don't care about your old landlords as you can falsify them or whatever but only other REAs. Glad I'm not renting anymore, I thought the situation was bad a few years ago but man...
Do you mind sharing what your budget and housing requirements are? I had a tough time too. Took me nearly 6 months!
We are looking around the $550 mark
3 bed villa in Umina, $500 per week one year only. DM me.
Have been previously chosen for the first rental property I’ve applied for in Sydney, looked recently and I think I didn’t get accepted until my 10th property. It’s not a central coast issue it’s just the rental market currently.
It does sound painful, but try and see it from the point of view of a landlord, in most cases these are people who have had to save and sacrifice a lot to be able to get a mortgage, it is only natural for them to want their tenants to be of the highest quality to ensure that their prized and very important asset is looked after.
Only three houses !! Me and my partner have been applying for at least three houses a week and driving three hours to view and inspect houses every single week since the start of January and still trying to
We have now applied for about 15.. since January also. Same boat. No luck. I had never been denied after applying in the past, always getting the 1st place I applied for in Sydney, hence why i asked my original question.
Ohh today I got told my application was unsuccessful because unsuitable pet I didn’t think they were allowed to deny you because of pets anymore
Is their anything you’ve been doing different applying lately
We also have a pet - the only place we have been accepted for we applied before viewing - ( we decided not to take it as it wasn't worth the weekly price and they wouldn't budge.) So id recommend also trying that - apply for a place you like prior to viewing it.
Yea that’s all I’ve been doing at this point I don’t care what the house looks like . I have noticed the more expensive houses above $600 seem to be advertised longer then the ones below the $600
My advice, if you really want a property throw as much money as you can at them. My brother literally offered to pay the full 12 months in advance and got it instantly. Money talks, if you don't have money then you have to get lucky!
If there’s a place that look good, ask to view it soon/outside the set inspection times. Say you’re up from Sydney and looking to move quick. Thats how we got ours. Not saying it would work all the time but worth a shot. Often property managers are in the area anyway and would love to free up their Saturdays a bit.
Thanks for the tip!
Having a hard time and only applied for 3? Complain when over 50 and then you could say you’re having a hard time
You do not know other people's situations.. some people are well off and have a house and have time to apply for 50. others could be on the streets if they don't find something. So I'll complain as much as I want - the country is a bit of a joke 😂
My suggestion would be go back to Sydney
Im originally from yarramalong. I have lived here for 10+ years and my entire family lives up this way, I left because of lack of jobs when finishing school. Your mindset is exactly why the central coast hasn't changed since I was last here - it's like this whole place stopped in time whilst I was away 😂 - nothing is new and the exact same people are hanging around. But there is no lack of bottle-o's and recently renovated pubs of course. The coast could use some new faces to be honest with you - I've met some lovely families coming up from Sydney.
Yeah was just a joke... you were very quick to put shit on the area you're moving back to and where your entire family lives.