There are many examples of conflicting media reports which confuse investors. Here's another one: in the same week we have one report that Adelaide's rental vacancies remain very tight at 1.01% - and a second report claiming the city's rent crisis is over, with some properties now taking five weeks to rent.

Under the heading "What rent crisis?", the Sunday Mail reports that the shortage of rental properties is over. Good properties are available but can't find tenants. Open inspections are attracting few lookers, in some cases none at all.

This is all in sharp contrast to the latest media release from the Real Estate Institute of South Australia. It says the vacancy rate in April was 1.01%, which "offered little relief to prospective tenants trying to get their foot in the door" and making it "vital" that investors get into the market to "help alleviate the shortage of properties".

Says REISA president Mark Sanderson: "If people are considering property investment, there is no better time."

Doesn't make sense, does it? One report contradicts the other.

Here are some possible explanations. The first is that Adelaide's rental market is never as tight as its vacancy rate indicates. This is because the REISA has a different definition of "vacancy" to everywhere else in Australia. In every other city, if a property doesn't have a tenant, it counts as a vacancy. In Adelaide, it doesn't count as a vacancy unless it's been empty for two weeks. So, on any given day, there are more vacant homes that the REISA vacancy rate suggests.

Another is that the market is no longer as tight as it was in December and January because students and job seekers looking for a place to live for the start of the year have been satisfied. Demand is not as strong as it was.

And a final clue to the mystery is the suggestion