South East Queensland Rental Supply Watch — May 2026 Edition
About this series: This is the first instalment of a monthly market tracker I'll be publishing across the next 12 to 18 months. Each month I monitor the rental vacancy rates across the same thirty South East Queensland suburbs so we can watch — in real time — how supply is shifting and what it means for buyers, investors and tenants. The figures below reflect the latest data available as at May 2026, with the trend lines drawn from January through May. Check back every month as the picture evolves.
As a buyer's agent working across South East Queensland every day, the single question I am asked more than any other right now is some version of: "Is the rental crunch real, or is it media hype?" My answer is always the same — let the data speak. So this month I tracked the rental vacancy rates across thirty suburbs spanning Brisbane, Logan, Ipswich, Moreton Bay, the Redlands, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, from January through to May 2026. The picture that emerged is unambiguous: South East Queensland is still firmly in the grip of one of the tightest rental markets this region has ever seen.
What a Vacancy Rate Actually Tells You
Before diving into the numbers, it is worth a quick reminder of why this metric matters so much to property investors and buyers. The vacancy rate is simply the proportion of rental properties sitting empty and available at any given time. The industry generally regards around 3.0% as a "balanced" market — enough churn that tenants have choice and landlords have to compete. Below roughly 2.0%, the market tips firmly in the landlord's favour, and upward pressure on rents becomes almost inevitable. Below 1.0%, you are looking at a genuine shortage, where well-presented properties are leased within days and tenants routinely offer above the asking rent to secure a home.
Keep that benchmark in mind, because almost every suburb I tracked is sitting well under it.
The Headline: A Region Running on Empty
Across the thirty suburbs, the overwhelming majority recorded a vacancy rate at or below 1.0% in their most recent reading. That is not a localised pocket of tightness — it is region-wide, stretching from inner-Brisbane apartment markets all the way out to the affordable growth corridors of Ipswich and Logan and up to the Sunshine Coast.
The tightest markets of all were extraordinary. Nundah in Brisbane's north and Ipswich's CBD both sat at just 0.3%, with Logan Central at 0.4%, and Newstead and Strathpine at 0.5%. To put that in perspective, a 0.3% vacancy rate means that for every thousand rental homes, only three are available at any moment. For tenants, that is brutal. For investors and landlords, it is about as strong a position as the market can offer.
At the looser end of the spectrum — and "looser" is relative here — sat Indooroopilly at 2.6%, Carindale at 2.1%, Springfield Lakes at 2.0% and Burleigh Heads at 1.9%. It is no coincidence that these tend to be higher-priced, unit-heavy or master-planned areas where there is simply more stock turning over at any one time. Even so, all four remain at or below the 3.0% balanced-market line.
Here is the full snapshot of where each of the thirty suburbs landed on its most recent reading:
Suburb Council Region Latest Vacancy Rate
Nundah Brisbane City 0.3%
Ipswich (CBD) Ipswich City 0.3%
Logan Central Logan City 0.4%
Newstead Brisbane City 0.5%
Strathpine Moreton Bay 0.5%
Springwood Logan City 0.6%
Beenleigh Logan City 0.6%
Redcliffe Moreton Bay 0.6%
Mount Gravatt Brisbane City 0.7%
Goodna Ipswich City 0.7%
North Lakes Moreton Bay 0.7%
Capalaba Redland City 0.7%
Southport Gold Coast 0.7%
Maroochydore Sunshine Coast 0.7%
Nambour Sunshine Coast 0.7%
Cleveland Redland City 0.8%
Wynnum Brisbane City 0.9%
West End Brisbane City 1.0%
Chermside Brisbane City 1.0%
Redbank Plains Ipswich City 1.0%
Robina Gold Coast 1.0%
Forest Lake Brisbane City 1.1%
Marsden Logan City 1.1%
Caloundra Sunshine Coast 1.1%
Caboolture Moreton Bay 1.3%
Coomera Gold Coast 1.3%
Burleigh Heads Gold Coast 1.9%
Springfield Lakes Ipswich City 2.0%
Carindale Brisbane City 2.1%
Indooroopilly Brisbane City 2.6%
Reading the Monthly Trend, Not Just the Snapshot
A single month's figure is a photograph; the monthly trend is the movie, and that is where the real insight lives. For a number of suburbs I was able to track the full month-by-month movement from January through May, and the direction of travel matters enormously for anyone weighing up a purchase.
Several suburbs tightened as the year progressed — meaning availability shrank and the landlord's hand strengthened. North Lakes drifted down from 0.9% in January to 0.7% by May. Mount Gravatt moved from 0.9% to 0.7% over the same window. Most dramatic of all was Capalaba in the Redlands, which began the year with relatively comfortable availability around 2.1% and tightened sharply to just 0.7% by May — a striking compression that tells me demand there is accelerating faster than supply can respond. Caboolture told a similar story, easing off a February peak of 2.4% to settle at 1.3% by May.
Not every market moved the same way. Indooroopilly ran against the grain, easing steadily from 1.6% back in December 2025 up to 2.6% by May. This is exactly the kind of nuance that a regional headline number hides — a university-catchment, unit-heavy suburb can loosen even while the suburbs around it tighten. Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast was the picture of stability, hovering between 0.5% and 0.7% across the whole period.
The lesson here is one I repeat to every client: the regional average is a starting point, never a conclusion. Within a single council area you can find one suburb tightening and its neighbour easing in the very same month.
What This Means If You're Buying
For investors, persistently sub-1% vacancy rates are about as strong a fundamental as you will find. Properties lease quickly, rental income is dependable, and the scarcity underpins ongoing rent growth. The suburbs sitting at 0.3% to 0.5% — Nundah, Ipswich CBD, Logan Central, Newstead, Strathpine — are the standouts on this measure, combining genuine tenant demand with minimal competing supply.
But a tight vacancy rate is only one piece of the puzzle, and chasing the lowest number is not a strategy on its own. Suburbs with very low stock can also be volatile month to month, and a 0.3% reading does not automatically translate into the strongest capital growth or the best yield. The slightly "looser" suburbs such as Indooroopilly, Carindale and Springfield Lakes still sit within a healthy range and may offer better value entry points, more stock to choose from, and stronger long-term growth drivers.
This is precisely where independent, on-the-ground advice earns its keep. The vacancy data tells you where the pressure is; understanding why, and whether a given suburb fits your specific budget, strategy and timeline, is the work of a good buyer's agent.
The Bottom Line
The numbers from January to May 2026 — the most recent being this May 2026 snapshot — confirm what I am seeing in the field every week: South East Queensland's rental market is exceptionally tight, and the squeeze is broad-based rather than confined to a handful of trophy suburbs. For tenants, conditions remain genuinely difficult. For buyers and investors who get their suburb selection right, the fundamentals are as compelling as they have been in years — provided the decision is grounded in data rather than headlines.
This is the May 2026 edition. I'll be back next month with a fresh read on all thirty suburbs, so you can track exactly how South East Queensland's rental supply is moving over the year ahead. Follow along to stay in front of the market.
This article is based on the best-available published rental vacancy data for thirty South East Queensland suburbs over the period January to May 2026, drawn from sources including SQM Research, HtAG Analytics, Suburbtrends, PRD, REIQ and others. Vacancy figures can vary in definition between providers and can be volatile in low-stock suburbs; the figures here are intended as a market guide and not as personal financial advice. Always seek tailored advice for your individual circumstances before making a property decision.
