Vacancy Rate - is it accurate?

I am looking at the vacancy rates of a few "new" suburbs in VIC and have found that they are so low compared to people telling. So just wondering how accurate this so called vacancy rate is.

For example -
tarneit - 1.92%
Berwick - 1.05%
Wyndham Vale 1.28%

and some old but cheap suburbs -
Hoppers Crossing - 0.97%
Seddon - 1.79%
Werribee- 1.56%
Epping - 1.3%

Blue chip suburbs -
Burwood - 1.72%
Hawthorn - 2.73%
Box Hill - 3.65%

source: http://www.realestateinvestar.com.au

So are these accurate? It doesn't make any sense to me that those cheap or new suburbs are having that low vacancy rates.

 

It's also important to see the volume of rental property and the time on the market.

I do it manually by making list of properties available for rent, and track it on a daily basis. This allows me to have a better understanding of the market. I have been doing it for the last 6 months.

 

I would say it's about as accurate as the price estimates of houses on these sites. Take them with a pinch of salt and best to call a local REA to understand rental demand.

 

FYI - berwick is not a new suburb. Has many 'new' H&L suburbs close by however.