YOUNG mum Jess Hayes is among the growing throng of renters taking advantage of record-low interest rates and plunging into the property market.
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Latest numbers from the Real Estate Institute of Victoria showed a 3.2 per cent rise in the city’s rental vacancy rates during June.
Ballarat’s vacancy rate is substantially higher than the average regional vacancy rate –which sits at 2.4 per cent.
The increase comes as record interest rates give would-be-buyers the chance to break into home ownership.
Comparable regional cities Bendigo, Wimmera, Shepparton and Goulburn recorded slightly lower vacancy rates than Ballarat.
They stood at 2.8 per cent, 2.5 per cent and 2.2 per cent respectively.
Ms Hayes, 21, said low interest rates gave her the incentive to investigate a range of housing options.
The young mum and her partner have been renting for one-and-a-half-years.
She now wants to save for her own mortgage, rather than pay off someone else’s.
“I think the sooner you start working towards owning your own house, the more it will benefit you later in life,” Ms Hayes said.
Ballarat Real Estate general manager Allister Morrison said the current market gave first-home buyers the opportunity to pounce.
“Interest rates are so low,” Mr Morrison said.
“We’ve seen a few more people interested in entering the property market.”
Mr Morrison said “super affordable” Ballarat prices meant people could buy a home for around $300,000 in an area close to quality shopping, health care and schools.
“(People) are seeing the lifestyle advantages of living in Ballarat,” Mr Morrison said.
He said rental vacancy rates routinely increased during the winter months, while university was on break.
“There is always a seasonal impact in a university city, because at the start of the year there is a influx of tenants,” Mr Morrison said.
“In the winter months it is a bit quieter.”
Ms Hayes said subsidies for building new homes made that option increasingly appealing.
“I have a number of friends, aged from 21- 25, and many of them are also looking at buying,” Ms Hayes said.
Data from the Yellow Brick Road wealth management hopes and dreams survey showed Ballarat residents aspired to home ownership.
Ms Hayes said ownership was one of her priorities.
“It’s important to have the security of owning a home with a family,” she said.
