Adelaide has had the tightest rental market of any Australian capital for several years running, and rents have moved a long way in a short time. If your property has had the same tenant — and the same rent — for a while, there's a fair chance it's now renting below the market. A rental appraisal tells you by how much.
What a rental appraisal is (and isn't)
A rental appraisal is a written opinion of the rent your property would likely achieve if it were offered on the market today. It is not a formal valuation, and it's not financial advice — it's an evidence-based estimate from someone who leases comparable properties every week.
How a proper appraisal is built
- Comparable lettings — what properties like yours have actually leased for recently, not what they were advertised at. Asking rents and achieved rents can be different numbers.
- Your property's specifics — condition, heating and cooling, parking, outdoor space, pets policy. Small things move rent more than most owners expect.
- Demand signals — enquiry volumes and days-on-market for similar stock in your suburb right now. A spring market and a mid-winter market are not the same market.
- The tenancy you have — a sitting tenant who pays on time has real value. The right answer is sometimes a measured increase that keeps a great tenant, not the theoretical maximum.
Why rents drift below market
Under South Australian tenancy law, rent can generally only be increased once every 12 months — so a rent that misses one review cycle is often two years behind by the time anyone looks at it. Agencies with large portfolios miss review dates more often than they'd admit. (It's why we diarise every review date and put rent on the agenda at least annually, in writing.)
What a below-market rent actually costs
$30 a week doesn't sound like much. It's $1,560 a year — more than most owners' entire annual management fee. Reviewing the rent is routinely worth more than shopping around on fees, which is why we'd rather show you both numbers at once.
Get the number for your property
A written appraisal from Statton Real Estate is free, carries no obligation, and comes personally from the principal — usually within two business days. It includes comparable evidence, a recommended range, and what our published management fees would cost on your property. Request yours here.
General information only. A rental appraisal is an opinion of likely market rent based on comparable properties — it is not a valuation and not financial advice.