Gold Coast Rental Listings Climb to 12,500 as Council Tracks Short-Term Data

Gold Coast City Council recorded 12,500 active short-term rental listings in June, a 15 percent rise from the same month last year.

The jump comes as state MPs in LNP-held seats push for tighter rules on Airbnb-style lets before the next sitting in August. The numbers matter now because the council must decide by December how many nights owners can rent out homes in established suburbs without triggering extra rates or compliance checks.

Coastal streets and Olympic sites in the data

Most listings sit along Gold Coast Highway in Surfers Paradise and in the blocks around Robina Town Centre. Those same postcodes feed workers and visitors toward the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre and Robina Stadium, both confirmed 2032 Olympic venues. Council planners cross-checked the rental database against light-rail patronage figures at Broadbeach South station and found 2,100 listings within 800 metres of the line.

The average nightly rate across those listings reached $318 in the June quarter, according to the council’s quarterly snapshot released last week. That figure sits $47 above the 2025 average and reflects higher demand from domestic travellers filling rooms left by international flight gaps.

What the latest permit numbers show

Building approvals for new multi-unit projects in the same coastal strip totalled 1,840 dwellings in the 2025-26 financial year. Of those, 620 applications listed short-term rental use as a possible future income stream. The council’s compliance team has issued 87 warning letters to owners who exceeded the current 90-night cap without registering.

Residents can check their own street against the public dashboard the council updates on the first Monday of each month. Property owners planning to list a unit should submit the registration form at least 14 days before advertising, or risk fines that start at $2,200 for a first breach.