PHOTO: A record proportion of Sydney homes are empty. Picture: Jonathan Ng Source: News Corp Australia

Tenants will be in a strong position to renegotiate their rents following a record surge in the number of Sydney rental properties sitting vacant.

Figures published today showed nearly 8000 homes became empty over the past year, pushing the total number of vacancies to a record high of 23,837 in April.

The increase meant 3.4 per cent of all Sydney rentals were without a tenant compared to 2.3 per cent at the same time last year, according to the SQM Research data.

SQM Research director Louis Christopher said the increase in vacancies was the result of increased home building and a drop in the number of renters seeking homes.

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