Perth apartments & rentals: how to choose
Rentals are how most visitors get a beach in Perth: the supply is heavy in Scarborough, Cottesloe and Fremantle and in the apartment towers of East and South Perth, and thin only in the CBD itself. Western Australia now runs one of Australia’s more explicit short-term-rental regimes, though — a statewide register with a number that must appear in the listing — so the legal check below is quick, real, and worth doing before you pay.
⚠︎ Book a registered listing
Under Western Australia’s Short-Term Rental Accommodation Act 2024, every short-term rental in the state — hosted and unhosted alike — must be listed on the government’s STRA Register, and the registration number has to be displayed conspicuously in the advertisement; an unregistered property cannot lawfully be advertised or take bookings, and registrations run twelve months before renewal. Separately, under the state planning rules, an unhosted whole-home rental inside the Perth metropolitan area generally needs development approval from the local council unless it is let for 90 nights or fewer (non-consecutive) in a registration year; hosted stays where the owner lives on site are exempt from that approval requirement statewide. Importantly, this is not a nightly cap on guests or on properly approved properties — the state has not capped nights — and there is no bed tax or short-stay levy in WA. Rules and thresholds do change, so confirm the current position with the official sources below.
Rules change — confirm the current requirements: WA Short-Term Rental Accommodation Register (Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety).
Who a rental suits
Rentals suit families and groups who want a kitchen and separate rooms, anyone basing a trip on a beach suburb where hotels barely exist, and stays of a week or more where laundry and cooking genuinely change the budget. For one to three nights in the city, a hotel inside the Free Transit Zone is usually simpler and cheaper once you count the cleaning fee.
Verify before you book
- That the listing shows a WA STRA registration number — this is the first check, and you can look the number up on the government register before you book.
- Whether the host lives on site (hosted) or you have the whole place (unhosted), since that is what the approval rules turn on.
- How far it actually is to a train station or a frequent bus — Scarborough and much of the coast has no train, and a “10 minutes to the beach” listing can mean a drive.
- That air conditioning is real and covers the bedrooms, not just a lounge-room split system — this matters from December to February.
- Whether parking is included and, in an apartment tower, whether the strata by-laws actually permit short stays and how the visitor bay works.
- Recent reviews mentioning noise (Northbridge and South Terrace addresses), water pressure and how the self-check-in lockbox worked in practice.
Where to look for rentals
Scarborough and the northern beaches carry the biggest supply of family-sized apartments and houses, usually with a pool and parking. Fremantle has the most characterful stock — limestone cottages and warehouse conversions within walking distance of the markets and the harbour. East Perth, South Perth and Burswood are apartment-tower territory with river and skyline views and quick access back into the CBD by ferry or train. Cottesloe is the priciest per night for the least space, and it books out early for December and January.
Check live rentals & availability
Browse current Perth rentals on Vrbo — confirm the listing shows a WA registration number.
Check Perth rentals on Vrbo →Some booking links are affiliate links — if you book through them we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes which options we recommend.
Prefer a front desk and a pool? Compare hotels →