An email from a leasing manager has given some Perth renters a rare bit of hope: the asking rent on a Baldivis home has been cut from $630 to $600 a week.
The renter who received it said it was the most satisfying thing they'd heard in a long time, and wondered whether price drops in the outer suburbs might spread closer to the city.
What renters are seeing
Other locals said they had noticed the same thing. Some reported being the only people at an inspection, or agents chasing them up weeks later to ask if they would apply. Others had spotted reductions in Maylands and a handful of inner suburbs, though some said those homes usually had problems such as mould, dated interiors or no air conditioning.
"We went for inspection for one property and we were the only ones who turned up there." - Perth renter
Not everyone is feeling it. One Wanneroo renter said their four-bedroom rent had just gone up to $965 a week, from $470 six years ago, and another in Baldivis said their lease has a clause lifting the rent to $800.
Photo: Calistemon via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). File photo of a Baldivis housing estate.
What the numbers say
The latest REIWA figures, released on 19 October 2026, show Perth's median weekly rents held steady over the September quarter at $750 for houses and $700 for units. But REIWA president Rob Mandanici warned against reading that as an easing, saying rents are at record highs, affordability is at a record low and the vacancy rate fell to 1.7 per cent at the end of September.
REIWA also said demand had dropped most in suburbs that had seen lots of first home buyer and investor activity, and that four interest rate rises this year had hit buyers hard. So one $30 cut may say more about one property than the whole market, but it's a sign some landlords are finding the ceiling.
Sources: REIWA; comments from Perth renters.
Hero photo: Calistemon via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). File photo of Baldivis seen from Tamworth Hill.
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