Renting a home, buying or building a new one is a significant decision. As of 2025, with costs still elevated and availability tight, it can leave you asking, “Should I move house or not?” Australia continues to experience pressure in the rental market, house prices show ongoing growth (albeit more moderate), and the building industry has its challenges.
As rents remain high and building approvals fluctuate, many individuals and families are reconsidering whether 2026 is the right time to move. Let’s explore the current situation with insights into what’s happening now to help you make an informed decision on whether or not it’s the right time to move or not.
Over recent years, Australia has seen sustained upward pressure on rents. But the pace is now moderating.
According to CBRE’s Apartment Vacancy & Rent Outlook (1H 2025), future apartment supply may hover around 60,000 units per year over 2025–2029, while Australia’s population growth suggests demand for ~75,000 units per year to avoid further vacancy tightening.
High rental costs along with low vacancy rates create significant challenges for renters. With the national vacancy rate extremely low, finding affordable housing has become increasingly difficult. This in itself will have you questioning if you should move or not.
And as demand continues to outstrip the supply of rental properties, prospective tenants face fierce competition and limited options. It’s one of the reasons people need our services as interstate removalists.
If your rent has increased substantially, you may be considering moving. But given market tightness, whether you’ll find something measurably “better” is uncertain, the improvements may be marginal or come with trade-offs. It is still worth a look at what is happening in various areas however. People are moving. And prices have started to stabilise. ABC News
This depends heavily on you - your finances, ability to borrow, location, and where you see yourself in the coming years. Here is some information that may help:
These figures show that the pipeline for new construction is under stress, and approvals are not consistently rising. If approvals are rising, it can signal that new housing supply could increase in 1-2 years. That might ease price and rent pressures.
Approvals falling means fewer new homes coming, so less supply and this might keep house prices and rents high.
Because buying an existing home avoids many of the execution risks of building, it may be more appealing if you want more certainty. The wait for building a new home is also a long one. So let's get onto that.
The building industry in Australia has been dealing with its own set of challenges. Building still carries risk, but with greater visibility now compared to a few years ago.
So building gives you control over design and features, but you must accept the risk of cost overruns, delays, or contractor issues, more than you would when buying a house. In some areas, it's challenging to find a builder available in the next year or two but we recommend reaching out to a few in the area you are looking at to get a full picture of what to expect.
With the costs of renting, buying and building still rising, and availability somewhat limited, it’s worth sitting down and really considering if moving house now is the right decision for you. Here are some of the important things to evaluate:
So, should you move? If you can and want to, there are definitely reasons that would make it worthwhile. Firstly, start with a plan, understanding what might be hard, and what you can get around. The trickiest thing may be moving out of one place straight into another. We can help with storage options for in-between places if that’s needed. So you may need to be clever and have a backup plan, but as interstate removalists, we help people move every day so it’s possible for you as well.