Australia news live: rental vacancies at record low in most big cities and prices rising | Australia news
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Good morning, Nick Visser I’m here to grab the blog. Let’s get to the point.
Dan Jervis-Bardy
Mark Butler says changes to NDIS funding are ‘essential’ for plan to get back on track
Sweeping changes to the national disability insurance scheme are expected to save the federal budget $35 billion over four years, the health secretary said. Mark Butler, confirmed.
Butler yesterday announced a major overhaul to contain the program’s rising costs, including changes to eligibility rules that are expected to remove at least 160,000 participants from the program by 2030.
Instead of costing more than $70 billion by the end of the decade, the NDIS budget will be reduced to around $55 billion.
In an interview on the ABC’s 7.30 program last night, Butler said the changes would save the federal budget around $35 billion over four years.
That figure includes the recent $13 billion blowout in the projected cost of the plan over the four-year period, meaning the net savings are close to $22 billion, the minister said.
He said:
This is a significant figure, but one that we are confident is necessary to get this business back on track. After all, what we are trying to do is to secure its future in the long term.
Following his announcement to the National Press Club, Butler met with state and territory disability ministers; This is the first time their counterparts have been informed of this change.
He said disability ministers wanted more detail, including modeling supporting the changes.
But they were ready for this difficult challenge. Disability ministers speak to participants every day. They’re talking to disability service providers and they all say they want better quality service.
They want, they want, to clean up this kind of open-to-all market that has been growing for the last 10 years. They want to see the fraud cleaned up. They want to see more integrity in the system. So there’s a lot of enthusiasm for the job of getting this thing back on track.
Cheap houses outpace luxury price increases
Jonathan Barrett
Properties valued below the price caps of the federal government’s 5 per cent deposit guarantee scheme are rising faster than more expensive homes, according to Cotality’s analysis.
In the first six months since the scheme was expanded, the value of homes below the price cap increased by 6.7%, outpacing the 3.6% increase recorded for properties valued above the price cap.
The 5% guarantee has reduced the waiting time for many first-time homebuyers by reducing deposit requirements for a loan.
The government significantly raised price caps in October, allowing first home buyers to buy properties worth up to $1.5 million in Sydney and $950,000 in Melbourne.
Cotality says several factors could explain the price movements, with some buyers stepping up their purchases in anticipation of increased competition. Investors are also very active and may have increased prices, according to the real estate analytics company.
Cotality says: “Overall, the first home buyer deposit guarantee is likely to gradually lose its incentive power as more homes exceed price thresholds and an increasing proportion of potential buyers face a financing barrier that will only increase.”
There was mixed reaction to the low deposit plan. Economists have warned that while this could help first home owners compete better with investors, it could also accelerate prices, making it harder for potential buyers to find an affordable home.
Rental market tightens to record high with rents rising $25 a week
Luca Ittimani
Figures from Domain show the rental market is tighter than ever, adding $25 a week to the typical advertised rental price.
Average rents in the capital cities rose to $680 a week for houses and $675 for flats. Price growth had slowed in 2025 but has now increased in most cities.
The national vacancy rate is at a record low of 0.7%; Vacant rental stock levels are at record lows in Sydney (0.6%), Perth (0.3%) and Darwin and Hobart (0.2%). Melbourne, the city with the highest vacancy rate, fell to just 1%, down from 1.6% in December.
With so few properties on the market, rents would rise even faster if tenants could afford to pay more, but they can’t, says Domain’s chief housing economist: Dr. Nicola Powell.
Vacancy rates are lower than ever and supply is incredibly tight, but rent growth is no longer accelerating everywhere. This tells us that the household cannot stretch any further.
realestate.com.au Data released today showed average advertised rents rising by $30 per week to $680 per week in the first three months of 2026.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I Martin Farrer with the best night stories and then it will be Nick Visser with the main action.
Mark Uşak The Albanian government’s sweeping changes to the national disability insurance program are expected to save the federal budget $35 billion over four years, he told the ABC last night. More is coming.
Data on the housing market today shows that properties valued below the price caps of the federal government’s 5% deposit guarantee scheme are rising faster than more expensive homes. Another set shows the rental market is tighter than ever. Details coming soon.
