Canberra remains the country's most expensive capital city for renters

I own my own home and don't have any rental investments  .  No wonder kids don't leave home to rent in Canberra.

Canberra is a rip off.

Melbourne could soon become the cheapest city for renters, while Canberra remains the most expensive
House rents have hit record highs in every capital city in Australia except Melbourne, Perth and Darwin.

But for the first time on record, Melbourne has become the second-most-affordable capital city in Australia in which to rent a house, equal with Perth and behind Adelaide. 
Melbourne could become the most affordable city in the country in which to rent a house and unit this year, if present trends continue.
That's the finding from Domain's latest quarterly rent report, released on Thursday.
The March quarter report shows Australians are still adjusting geographically to the shock of the COVID lockdowns.
A significant shift in preferences for houses over units, for outer-city regions over cities and for some capital cities over others, is still affecting rents around the country in 2021.
Here's what Domain's March quarter report says about your capital city, or the capital city nearest to you.

Brisbane rents at record highs

For the first time in five years, it is more expensive to rent a house and unit in Brisbane than in Melbourne.
House rents have seen their steepest annual increase since 2008. They are now $440 a week, on average, up $30 from one year ago.
Unit rents are $15 a week higher compared to last year, sitting at $400 a week.
"Tenants will find less choice [in coming months], with the pool of available rentals shrinking by one-third compared to last year, pushing Brisbane's vacancy rate to a multi-year low," said Domain senior research analyst Nicola Powell.
"House and unit rents held steady or increased in all regions across Greater Brisbane over the March quarter, apart from unit rents in Ipswich sliding a mere $5 a week.
"Annually, the biggest jump in asking rent was recorded for houses in Brisbane's north and Moreton Bay North, the steepest annual increase since 2008, up 6.8 per cent and 6.7 per cent annually."

Canberra: a landlord's nirvana

Canberra remains the most expensive capital city to rent a house or a unit in the country, at $600 a week and $500 respectively, on average.
It costs $50 more to rent a house in Canberra than in Sydney, and $30 more to rent a unit.
Canberra's landlords know it, too.
"Tenants have been operating in a landlords' market for some time and landlords have become accustomed to the fierce competition to secure a lease," Dr Powell said.
"The vacancy rate fell further in March to 0.7 per cent, similar to the tight rental market conditions seen in 2018 when rental prices were rising.
"Tenants will find the task of securing a lease harder [from here], as the estimated number of vacant rentals continues to decline.
"This is during a time when Australian expats return, temporary overseas employees extend stays and the city is better placed economically, buoyed by the public sector and industries reliant on government spending," she said.

Melbourne could become cheapest city in Australia for renters

Conditions remained weak in Melbourne's rental market in the March quarter, according to Domain.
House rents were $430 a week, having slipped $10 a week from last quarter's record high. 
However, the house rental market is not uniform. House rents pushed to record highs in the outer east, south east and Mornington Peninsula.
Unit rents fell another $10 over the March quarter to $375 a week, marking 12 consecutive months of declining rents.
The cost of renting a unit has now returned to 2015 levels after the steepest annual fall since Domain's records began in 2004.
"For the first time on record, Melbourne is the second-most-affordable capital city to rent a house, joint with Perth and behind Adelaide," Dr Powell said.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-15/melbourne-could-be-cheapest-city-for-renters-domain-rent-report/100068780