Hobart chef Callum Cowie summed up trying to find a new rental in Tasmania's capital city in one word: "nightmarish".
The 27-year-old and his partner had 10 days left on their current lease and had been searching for a new rental home since the start of the year.
"Looking for stuff that suits both of us, in our budget, that has some of the things that we need… has just been nightmarish," Mr Cowie said.
Mr Cowie said he knew other prospective tenants were having a similar experience.
"The last four inspections I've been to over the course of the last two weeks, there have been 50-plus people at all four."
"The worst one [was] down in Lenah Valley where, off a rough count, just counting heads when I showed up and left, there was close to 100 people had gone through the house."
He was worried about the prospect of even more competition for rental properties after Australia opens its international border to fully vaccinated travellers and migrants on February 21.
"If it's just going to be even more people coming down, I just don't want to think about it," he said.
More renters, fewer properties
Domain's chief of research and economics, Nicola Powell, said the data backed up Mr Cowie's experience.
"[Hobart] is an extremely competitive rental market for tenants. It is actually the tightest capital city rental market out of all of the major cities in Australia," Dr Powell said.
She said the return of international migrants would likely make it even tougher for renters in Hobart.
"Most overseas migrants and international, foreign students rent upon arrival, so it is going to change the dynamics of the rental market and is likely to put greater pressure on rents in terms of the demand for rents."
University of Tasmania senior lecturer in business and economics, Maria Yanotti, said Hobart's rental vacancy rate was 0.9 per cent and Launceston's 0.8 per cent.
She said the current boom in sale prices for Tasmanian properties was sucking more houses and units out of the rental market.
"It's not just a matter of affordability, it's also a matter of access. Even if you could pay for it, you may not even be able to find a property to rent," Dr Yanotti said.
Dr Yanotti said the high selling prices for Tasmanian homes had also boosted the state government's tax revenue through conveyance duties.
"The money could be redirected to support particularly the people who are trying to access the rental market, whether it be incentivising investors into the private rental market or some other strategy," she said.
Agents hosting big crowds
Real estate agent Shenna Franklin recently hosted 30 groups who inspected a one-bedroom rental unit in the inner Hobart suburb of New Town, and says almost all of them indicated they would apply for the property.
Ms Franklin said the absence of international students had affected demand for rental properties in suburbs close to the University of Tasmania campus.
"Places like Sandy Bay, for example — we've found that without the international students it's a tad quieter than what it normally would be, so possibly it'll change if and when they head back," she said.
Ms Franklin expects the return of more international students after borders open could also push up demand in other parts of the city.
"It could be a situation that if there isn't the properties available in that local area around the campus they'll start to be looking further afield," she said.
"I guess it'll make the competition a little bit, even more, if that's possible."
