But these shifts, coupled with a collapse in migration, are having the opposite effect on house rents in Melbourne, which have actually fallen 2.3 per cent since last March.

In a stunning turn, Melbourne has emerged from the pandemic as the second most affordable city for house renters, tied with Perth.

Indeed APAC economist Callam Pickering said that’s unlikely to last.

“What we’re seeing in a lot of this rental data right now is that there’s probably something a bit temporary about it,” Mr Pickering told TND.

“It remains really difficult to save for a deposit if you’re also renting. That’s as clear today as it’s ever been.”

Mr Pickering doesn’t expect rents to continue increasing at their current pace, because wages growth can’t support ongoing increases.

In fact, the ABS’ measure of rent prices – a broader measure that includes existing leases – has actually fallen 1.3 per cent over 2020.

Mr Pickering said Domain’s data on new lease prices suggests landlords have been trying to cash in on improvements to household budgets caused by JobKeeper.

“Household incomes last year rose at their fastest pace in a decade due to JobKeeper and other support measures,” he said, referring to ABS data.

“Some landlords might be trying to leverage that temporary windfall to boost their rental yields.”

The outlook for unit rents in Melbourne and Sydney is also more positive for tenants, Dr Powell said.

Unit outlook more positive for renters

The median unit rent price has fallen 8.1 per cent to $429 since the beginning of the pandemic last March – a whopping decline of $38 per week.

That’s because unit prices were hit particularly hard last year as people moved out of city areas and into houses in the suburbs and regions.

Median unit rents were down 12.8 per cent year on year in the March quarter, and also fell 9.6 per cent across Sydney in annual terms.

Unit rent prices across Melbourne and Sydney are likely to remain subdued until international students return to Australia.

But unit rents did rise 14.1 per cent in Perth in annual terms, and 9.4 per cent in Adelaide.