Property prices in suburbs near the city are set to surge again as a reopening of Australia's border to international students draws out Chinese buyers.
Juwai IQI, which markets homes to cashed-up buyers across Asia, said Sydney in particular was set to benefit as overseas university students returned on Wednesday for the first time since March 2020.
But Melbourne was expected to benefit too, despite being a cheaper place to rent as the border reopened to foreigners.
Chairman and co-founder Georg Chmiel said Sydney's inner west, north shore and the inner-south were likely to be in demand in 2022, with prospective Chinese buyers particularly interested in apartments.
'When students come back, demand will increase in some of the suburbs that have suffered the most during the pandemic,' he told Daily Mail Australia.
Suburbs near the city are set to surge again as a reopening of Australia's border to international students this week encourages Chinese buyers. Juwai IQI, which markets property to cashed-up buyers across Asia, said Sydney in particular was set to benefit as overseas university students on Wednesday returned for the first time since March 2020 (pictured is the University of New South Wales in Kensington)
'International student buyers still value the same locations that they liked before the pandemic.'
With Chinese students set to make up almost a third of the international intake, buyers from China will be particularly influential.
'There are more students from China than any other country,' Mr Chmiel said.
'Twenty-nine per cent of foreign students are Chinese, nearly as much as the next three countries combined.'
From December 15, fully-vaccinated international students are being allowed into Australia, with their entry delayed by two weeks to factor in the Omicron Covid variant.
Even before the return of international students, Sydney's rental vacancy rate in the year to November has shrunk from 3.5 per cent to 2.6 per cent, new SQM Research data showed.
This is still higher than the capital city average of 1.5 per cent with Perth, Adelaide, Darwin, Canberra and Hobart having rental vacancy levels of less than 1 per cent.
Melbourne has the highest rental vacancy rate of 3.2 per cent, which is more than double Brisbane's 1.3 per cent.
Chairman and co-founder Georg Chmiel said the inner west, north shore and areas of the inner-south were likely to be in demand, with prospective Chinese buyers particularly interested in apartments (pictured is an apartment at Chatswood on the lower north shore)
SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said rental demand for units in Australia's biggest cities was set to surge next year, following a slump during the pandemic.
