July 5 REA Insights Weekly Commercial Search Report, 2021
COVID-19 lockdowns across several Australian states resulted in searches to lease commercial properties falling sharply last week. Searches to buy property were largely flat.
Searches to buy commercial property held relatively steady over the past week, declining by just 0.2%. Investor confidence remains well above last year’s levels, however, with search volumes sitting 27% higher.
‘For sale’ searches showed mixed movement across the states, with week-on-week searches up in the Northern Territory (7.2%), the Australian Capital Territory (5.2%), New South Wales (2%) and Queensland (0.5%).
The other states, in contrast, saw searches to buy commercial property fall over the week, with the largest decline seen in South Australia (-3.1%).
‘For lease’ searches fell by 5.5% last week, driven by particularly large falls in the states impacted by lockdowns. Searches to lease commercial property are just 1.8% higher than the levels seen over the same period last year.
The Northern Territory saw the largest decline in ‘for lease’ searches last week, dropping by 28.4%. Western Australia and New South Wales were also impacted by lockdowns and saw lease searches fall 12% and 6.2% respectively.
Compared to last year’s levels, the Australian Capital Territory has seen the strongest recovery in search volumes, up 17.9%. South Australia follows, at 9% growth in ‘for lease’ searches.
The unpredictability of snap lockdowns and likelihood of future outbreaks poses a challenge to many businesses. In particular, those renting retail or office spaces may choose to delay leasing decisions as a result.
