With a slew of projects recently completed and several more announced, Australia’s build-to-rent (BTR) sector is entering a phase of accelerated development. 

The national pipeline of apartments (operating, under construction or in planning) has increased from 39,300 in Q2 2025 to 51,000 in Q1 2026. The sector value has increased from $30.1 billion to $40.1 billion over that same period. 

The figures were revealed recently in BDO Australia’s latest report ‘2026 Build to Rent report: A changing of the guard in Australia’s living sector’ and additionally show that Sydney and New South Wales are becoming major markets within the space. 

The cumulative number of operating apartments nationwide is expected to increase fivefold from just over 9000 in 2024 to more than 46,000 by 2029. Annual completions are also ramping up from around 5000 units in 2024 to more than 9800 by 2028.  

Growing pipelines

Victoria has the largest BTR pipeline (24,855 apartments across 65 projects), followed by New South Wales (17,465 apartments across 51 projects), which is now leading growth in planned developments. 

Queensland remains the third-largest market, with 6301 apartments across 17 projects. The Sunshine State’s BTR sector is buoyed by strong demand, but challenged by construction costs and labour competition that is being channelled towards major infrastructure programs leading to the 2032 Olympic Games.

NSW leads in forward pipeline momentum with 9645 planned units. The number of operating BTR apartments in NSW is anticipated to rise by 740 percent by 2032, compared to 132 percent in Victoria. 

BDO says that the country now has 33 operating platforms (up from 29). Platforms are concentrating their expansion in Sydney, with Coronation now the largest BTR platform nationally (5378 apartments), with its portfolio currently entirely Sydney-based.

Nationally, Coronation is followed by Assemble with 4848 apartments and Local with 3694 apartments. 

Melbourne’s lead in establishing the sector

“Melbourne helped institutionalise BTR in Australia, and it remains the country’s largest market today,” Luke Mackintosh, Real Estate Advisory Services partner at BDO Australia says. “But the growth story has moved. Sydney is closing the gap rapidly, and it’s reshaping national delivery patterns in the process.”

The BTR sector is still small relative to Australia’s overall rental market, representing only around 1.15 percent of rental stock and 0.31 percent of total housing stock. Forecasts suggest 350,000 apartments over the next 10 years.  

Mackintosh adds that BTR is creating more choice for renters, added certainty for investors and enhanced capacity for cities because it is designed to be owned and operated for the long term. “Institutional BTR won’t replace the need for build-to-sell product and first home buyer demand; this demand will always exist. It is about providing greater rental choices in a very tight housing market.”

Top image: Supplied by Coronation.

This article also appeared on ADR‘s sister site, FM Media