Warrnambool had the second lowest rental vacancy rate for regional Victoria in January.
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Real estate agents say they can't keep up with demand for properties, with unprecedented demand in all price ranges.
Homeseeka property manager John Warren said demand was the highest it had been in more than a decade. "It's never been like this," Mr Warren said.
Mr Warren said properties in the lower price ranges were getting snapped up quicker than ever before.
Properties priced between $300 and $400 are averaging 20 inquiries from interested parties, while even rentals priced between $500 and $600 are attracting high levels of interest. "Units or smaller houses under $300 are usually getting more than 30 interested parties."
Mr Warren said there was a huge increase in the number of people exiting metropolitan cities.
He said people now realised they could work from home and live in a regional city such as Warrnambool. "We've got a great retail hub, a great hospital, our schools are second to none and we've got the beach."
He said a number of people wanted to rent a property while finding a house to buy or building a new home.
Mr Warren said it was a great time for people to buy an investment property.
"It's a great opportunity for investors," he said. "Yields are high because there is strong demand and not much supply."
Mr Warren said he didn't expect demand would ease in the near future.
The vacancy rate for Warrnambool and the Western District in January was 0.4 per cent. The only regional area with a lower vacancy rate was East Gippsland and Wellington Shire, which was 0.2 per cent.
In December 2018, the city's vacancy rate was 1.8 per cent, compared to 2.5 per cent at the same time the previous year. At the time Real Estate Institute of Victoria chief executive officer Gil King said a rate of at least 3 per cent was required for a healthy rental market.
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